Who are ISIS-K, allegedly behind the Russia concert attack?

However, it is still early to say beyond doubt what the group’s motivations were, or whether at all the group was behind the attack.

Hinting at a possible Ukraine angle, President Vladimir Putin said on Saturday that some people on Ukraine’s side had allowed the terrorists to enter Russia. “All four direct perpetrators of the terrorist attack, all those who shot and killed people, were found and detained. They tried to hide and moved towards Ukraine, where, according to preliminary data, a window was prepared for them from the Ukrainian side to cross the state border. A total of 11 people were detained,” he said.

Here is what you need to know.

Who are the ISIS-K?

Islamic State Khorasan (ISIS-K), emerged in eastern Afghanistan in late 2014, and is currently one of the most active ISIS-affiliates. ‘Khorasan’ refers to an ancient caliphate in the region that today encompasses parts of Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan and Turkmenistan.

The group, comprising breakaway fighters of the Tehreek-e-Taliban (TTP), and others pledging allegiance to the late ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, has established a reputation for extreme brutality, an Al Jazeera report said.

The group’s membership is said to have declined since 2018, with the United States and Taliban inflicting heavy losses. However, Al Jazeera noted that it still remains one of the greatest threat to Taliban’s authority in the region.

What attacks has ISIS-K carried out?

The group has been responsible for a host of high-profile attacks since its inception. These include:

• The Kabul international airport attack in 2021, during the US’s Afghanistan withdrawal. The attack killed 13 US troops, and at least 175 Afghan civilians.
• The suicide bombing at the Russian embassy in Kabul, in 2022.
• The twin bombings in Kerman, Iran, earlier in 2024, which killed nearly 100 people.

Earlier this month, the top US general in West Asia said that ISIS-K could attack US and Western interests outside of Afghanistan, “in as little as six months and with little to no warning”, Reuters reported.

Why attack Russia?

The Moscow attack is the group’s most notable activity outside its home turf in Afghanistan and Iran. However, the group has openly opposed Putin due to his alleged mistreatment of Muslims in Russia, for years.

“ISIS-K has been fixated on Russia for the past two years, frequently criticising Putin in its propaganda,” Colin Clarke of Soufan Center, a Washington-based research group, told Reuters.

“Russia’s engagement in the global fight against ISIS and its affiliates, especially through its military operations in Syria and its efforts to establish connections with the Afghan Taliban – ISIS-K’s rival – marks Russia as a key adversary for ISIS/ISIS-K,”Amira Jadoon, co-author of The Islamic State in Afghanistan and Pakistan: Strategic Alliances and Rivalries (2023), told Al Jazeera.

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