Afghan, Pakistani ISIS Backers Behead Captured Pakistani Soldier

Killing Adds to Concern About ISIS Expanding in Region

A new video shows a group of Afghan and Pakistan militants who have pledged allegiance to ISIS beheading a captured Pakistani soldier, the first such video to come out of the region.

The video shows a large group of militants waving ISIS flags in a forest. Former Pakistani Taliban spokesman Shahidullah Shahid is seen in the video declaring support for ISIS caliph Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

The video will inevitably add to concern about ISIS’ expanding influence in the region, which had long been dominated by more region-specific Taliban leaders.

Shahid was one of several Pakistani Taliban figures who left the group in favor of ISIS. Young jihad-minded Afghans, who have traditionally also been Taliban recruits, have been a lot more interested in flocking to Syria and Iraq in recent months to join ISIS.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.