Kabul, April 22: A top leader of ISIS Khorasan Province (ISKP), Muneeb Mohammed, was arrested in an operation carried out by the forces earlier this month, said a statement issued by the Afghanistan Intelligence on Wednesday, Muneeb, during the course of interrogation, revealed close ties with several Pakistan-based extremist groups, including the anti-India Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).

Muneeb, designated as Commander by the Khorasan faction of dreaded terrorist group Islamic State, was also in-charge of coordinating with ideological partners in the region. He was in close contact with the Pakistani's Inter-State Intelligence (ISI), Haqqani Network, Sipah-e-Sahaba and Taliban's Peshawar Council, said a statement issued by the National Directorate of Security (NDS).

Muneeb was operating in the Afghanistan region with the aliases of Abu Bilal, Abu Halal and Abu Humam. By origin, he is from Pakistan but has been involved in the Afghan insurgency for over the last decade. He was earlier a member of Al-Qaeda, and later switched to Daesh - the Arabian acronym for ISIS - after the group began drawing cadres from other terrorist outfits.

According to the NDS, Muneeb was nabbed shortly after a similar raid was carried out on April - when ISKP chief Aslam Farooqui aka Mawlawi Abdullah was apprehended. The latter was charged by the Afghan Intelligence of masterminding the attack on a prominent gurudwara in Kabul, that left 28 Sikhs martyred.

Afghanistan, a close ally of India, has been consistent in supporting in New Delhi against accusing Pakistan of adopting terrorism as a "state policy". The Ashraf Ghani government has accused Islamabad of using insurgent groups in the region to maintain disability in Afghanistan. Speculations are rife that the ISI may be working more closely with the ISKP, ever since Taliban decided to retract from violence and enter into a peace deal with the United States.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 22, 2020 05:40 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).