BILAL SARWARY@bsarwary
Sharifullah’s Role in ISIS-K and His Connections to HQN and al-Qaeda
According to conversations with a former National Directorate of Security (NDS) official, Mohammad Sharifullah was initially an operative of the Haqqani Network (HQN) alongside Salahuddin, also known as Rajab, who currently leads Maktab al-Siddiq within the Islamic State, and Sanaullah Ghafari, also known as Shahab al-Muhajir, the current emir of ISIS-K (Islamic State Khorasan Province). This network was responsible for carrying out attacks in Kabul under HQN’s directives.
In 2015, when Salahuddin strategically shifted allegiance to ISIS-K, Sharifullah followed him. Salahuddin then established Kabul Katiba, a specialized urban warfare unit within ISIS-K, and became its leader, while Shahab al-Muhajir served as his deputy. Although Kabul Katiba was formally part of ISIS-K, the unit maintained a direct connection with the ISIS core leadership.
By 2019, as ISIS-K lost its territorial control in eastern Afghanistan and shifted its strategy toward urban warfare, Sharifullah emerged as a key operative with a direct link to Shahab al-Muhajir. He and his cell were responsible for some of the deadliest ISIS-K attacks in Kabul. To enhance ISIS-K’s operational secrecy, Sharifullah introduced a small-cell structure, allowing operatives to work independently while minimizing the risk of detection.
Sharifullah had received extensive training from al-Qaeda (AQ) in Waziristan between 2012 and 2013. ISIS-K’s urban warfare strategy provided him with the opportunity to apply what he had learned, making him highly skilled in executing terrorist attacks. In 2019, he held multiple meetings with al-Qaeda-linked networks in Pakistan, including Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), to secure funding for his operations under direct instructions from Shahab al-Muhajir.
In August 2019, NDS arrested Sharifullah and his network, later introducing him as one of ISIS-K’s most dangerous operatives in a statement issued in September 2019. During a press briefing, he was presented to journalists to explain his involvement in numerous attacks.
Following his capture, Sharifullah was imprisoned at Bagram prison until August 2021, when the Taliban took over Afghanistan and released an estimated 20,000 prisoners, including high-profile terrorists and criminals.
According to multiple NDS officials, Sharifullah was in the vicinity and observing when the Abbey Gate attack occurred in August 2021. Their assessment was based on intelligence gathered from their sources at the time.
