More chaos
The rulers are unable to control their own country
The Islamic State in Afghanistan showed again its power last week. Last Monday, September 5th, the Khorasan Province attacked the Russian Embassy in Kabul, marking the first time the group attacks a foreign diplomatic mission in Afghanistan. The attack killed and harmed at least 25 people.
According to the Islamic State, the attacker was someone named Waqqas al-Muhajir, implying he is from outside Afghanistan. Among the dead, there were at least two Russian diplomatic employees, as well as Taliban members. The attack also damaged the entrance of the embassy, as well as destroyed some vehicles. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said he hoped the perpetrators would be brought to justice.
The attack comes among an increase in Islamic State activity in Afghanistan since the fall of Kabul back in August 2021. The group has carried out diverse terror attacks in the country since then, targeting the Hazara Shia minority, the Taliban, and Afghanistan's neighbors. Also, after the Taliban pretended to assure Russia the Islamic State was diminished.
It is worth mentioning that attacks on foreign embassies in Afghan soil were rare, even during US occupation. At the same time, Russia was one of the only countries that kept its embassy open during and in the aftermath of the return to the Taliban to power.
However, the Islamic State in Afghanistan has already shown international ambitions. They have already targeted Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, as well as threatened Iran and China. Bordering Afghanistan, Turkmenistan also faces risk. However, this marks the first time the group targets foreign interests inside Afghanistan after the US occupation. Given past threats, there is a high possibility the group will at least try to target other foreign embassies and interests in Afghanistan.
This is not the first time Russian diplomatic staff is targeted by radical jihadists. Back in 2000, armed gunmen attacked with rocket propelled grenades the Russian embassy in Beirut, followed by shootings. No diplomatic personnel were killed that time. Six years later, al-Qaeda linked Iraqi jihadists kidnapped Russian diplomats in Baghdad, to later execute them on video. And back on December 2016, Russia's ambassador to Turkey, Andrei Karlov, was shot dead during an exhibition in Ankara.
The attack on the embassy is another indication the Taliban are failing to maintain order in Afghanistan and to contain the growing Islamic State threat. Also, the attack in the embassy could give the Islamic State a feeling of superiority, and will incite them to try to carry out more complex attacks.
Guillermo is a journalist, writer and independent international analyst. If you like what you read, please support him by donating:
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