UN Report: Al-Qaeda South Asia Branch Leaders Present in Kabul

A six-month report by the UN Security Council's sanctions monitoring team on global terrorism threats states that leaders of Al-Qaeda's Indian Subcontinent branch (AQIS), Osama Mahmoud and his deputy Yahya Ghori, are present in Kabul, with the group's media unit operating in Herat. The report notes AQIS remains active in southeast Afghanistan and continues to receive support from the Taliban, providing training and advisory services, particularly to the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

The Taliban have granted TTP greater freedom of operation and support in Afghanistan, including weapons permits, travel documents, and advanced military equipment such as assault rifles, night-vision devices, thermal imaging systems, sniper systems, and drone attack capabilities. This has led to increasingly complex TTP attacks against Pakistani security forces and government structures from Afghan soil, escalating regional tensions. The report describes TTP as one of the largest terrorist groups operating in Afghanistan.

Members of the Turkistan Islamic Party (TIP) receive identity documents from the Taliban, enabling free movement within Afghanistan, and have concentrated in Badakhshan, funding operations through poppy cultivation and mining. Approximately 250 TIP members joined Taliban police forces in 2025. One UN member state cited reports that TIP is calling members from Syria and neighboring countries to Afghanistan to prepare for jihad in Xinjiang.

The report also highlights ISIS-K's sustained operational capacity, primarily in northern Afghanistan, especially Badakhshan near the Pakistan border, posing a regional threat. It mentions training of foreign fighters in dedicated camps in Badakhshan. While Taliban officials claim no terrorist groups operate within Afghanistan's borders, no UN Security Council members support this view. The United States has placed a $10 million bounty on Osama Mahmoud and $5 million on Yahya Ghori. The Taliban have not responded to the report.