PESHAWAR, Pakistan/WASHINGTON – The leader of Islamic State’s branch in Afghanistan and Pakistan was killed in a US drone strike on July 26, a Pentagon spokesman said on Friday after the Afghan ambassador to Pakistan announced the news to Reuters.
The death of Hafiz Saeed Khan is a blow to efforts by Islamic State – also known as ISIS or Daesh – to expand from its heartlands in Syria and Iraq into Afghanistan and Pakistan, already crowded with jihadist movements, including the Taliban and al Qaeda.
It is the second US killing of a prominent militant in the region in months. (Reuters)
