Afghan forces arrest leader of IS in connection with Gurudwara attack

Afghan forces have arrested the leader of the country’s Islamic State group affiliate and the mastermind behind the attack on a gurudwara last month that killed 25 worshippers.

Authorities said that Aslam Farooqi, also known as Abdullah Orakzai, was arrested along with 19 other men in a complex operation. Farooqi was the mastermind behind an IS-claimed attack on the Gurdwara in Kabul.

Known as Islamic State in the Khorasan (IS-K), the Afghan IS branch has been on its back foot in recent months following continued operations by US forces and separately by the Taliban.