A key commander of the Islamic State Khorasan (IS-K) was killed in a targeted gun attack in the Sur Ghar area of Khyber district on Saturday, in what security sources believe is a significant blow to the group’s local network.
According to eyewitness accounts, unidentified armed assailants opened indiscriminate fire on Abdul Malik, a senior IS-K figure, while he was present in the locality. The sustained gunfire left him dead on the spot. The attackers managed to flee immediately after the assault, evading initial pursuit.
Local sources described Abdul Malik as an active and influential commander within IS-K’s operational structure in Khyber, reportedly involved in planning and executing multiple attacks and subversive activities in the region. He was believed to have maintained close links with the group’s regional leadership and had been on the radar of security agencies for several years.
Security forces and police swiftly reached the scene following the incident, cordoned off the area, and launched a search operation to trace the perpetrators. Officials said surveillance in the surrounding localities had been intensified in the wake of the killing.
IS-K has been linked to a series of high-profile attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in recent years, with Khyber district considered one of the areas where remnants of the group maintain an underground presence despite sustained counterterrorism operations. Security analysts say the killing of Abdul Malik could temporarily disrupt IS-K’s local command structure, but caution that the group retains the ability to reorganise and mount retaliatory strikes.
