The attack claimed by the Islamic State organization in Khorasan (EI-K), a branch of IS established in Afghanistan
According to a press release released Friday evening by this organization, the attack near Moscow was carried out by the Islamic State in Khorasan (EI-K) organization, a branch of IS based in Afghanistan, which has already threatened Russia in the past, explains Benoît Vitkine, correspondent for World in Moscow, in this article.
The precise number of attackers involved varies, according to sources, between three and five. On Saturday morning, the Kremlin announced the arrest of eleven people, “including four terrorists directly involved in the attack”.
The Islamic State organization in Khorasan was founded in 2015 by former Afghan and Pakistani Taliban executives who had pledged allegiance to ISIS. Its members, who carry out particularly brutal attacks in Afghanistan, against girls’ schools or hospitals, are today in open struggle with the Taliban, who have moved closer to Moscow in recent years.
“IS-K has focused a lot on Russia and Vladimir Putin over the past two yearsemphasizes, in the New York TimesColin P. Clarke, expert at security consulting firm Soufan Group. The group accuses the Kremlin of having Muslim blood on its hands, for its actions in Afghanistan, Chechnya and Syria. »