Three alleged members of the Islamic State Khorasan Province (IS-K) were reportedly captured and executed by the Afghan Taliban in Kunar province, according to security sources and multiple official Taliban-linked social media channels. Graphic images circulating online showed the severed heads of the individuals, reportedly slain on the afternoon of June 29.
The slain men were identified as Abu Bakr, Talha, and Aman Gul. According to Taliban sources, one of them had served as the IS-K’s shadow governor for Laghman province, a senior position within the group’s regional command structure.
Taliban-affiliated social media accounts hailed the operation as part of a broader campaign to eliminate IS-K presence in eastern Afghanistan, particularly in Kunar and Laghman provinces long known for hosting pockets of militant resistance.
Security analysts note that while the Taliban has intensified its crackdown on IS-K cells in recent months, extrajudicial executions remain a controversial method, raising questions about due process and the rule of law under the de facto regime.
There was no immediate independent confirmation of the killings, and IS-K has not yet issued a statement regarding the reported deaths of its operatives. Afghan-based observers warn that such incidents could further escalate the cycle of retaliatory violence between the two militant factions, both vying for dominance in the post-U.S. withdrawal landscape.
