Abdul Haseeb Logari

Summary

Abu ‘Umayr ‘Abd al-Hasib al-Logari or Abdul Haseeb Logari was a Pakistani Islamic militant who led the Islamic State – Khorasan Province from July 2016 until his death on 27 April 2017.[1][2]

Abu ‘Umayr ‘Abd al-Hasib al-Logari
ابو عمیر عبد الحسیب اللوگړی
2nd Wali of ISIS – Khorasan Province
In office
27 July 2016 – 26 April 2017
Preceded byHafiz Saeed Khan
Succeeded byAbdul Rahman Ghaleb
Deputy to ISIS–K Wali
In office
Unknown – 26 July 2016
Personal details
BornKurram Agency
Died27 April 2017
Mohmand Valley, Afghanistan
Alma materJamia Imam Bukhari
Military service
Allegiance Afghan Taliban
ISIS– Khorasan Province (2016–2017)
Battles/wars

Early life edit

Logari was born in Kurram Agency (today Kurram District), in Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA, later incorporated into Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Province) and was believed to be in his mid-thirties at the time of his death in 2017.

Logari studied in seminaries in Peshawar, Pakistan controlled by the Salafist jihadist group Jamaat al Dawa al Quran (JDQ) including eight years at the Jamia Imam Bukhari in Sargodha City, Punjab Province, Pakistan. Jamia Imam Bukhari, named after the famous hadith scholar Muhammad al-Bukhari, was run by Haji Inyat ur Rehman, son of JDQ founder, Jamil al-Rahman. Later, Logari studied for four years at Ganj madrassa, in Peshawar, headed by Abu Mohammad Aminullah Peshawari. Both Jamia Imam Bukhari and the Ganj madrassa are sanctioned by the United States for their connection to numerous Islamic terrorist groups including al-Qaeda, Lashkar-e Taiba, and the Afghan Taliban. The U.S. Department of the Treasury described Ganj madrassa in 2013 as "a school in Peshawar that serves as a training center and facilitates funding for al-Qa’ida, Lashkar-e Tayyiba, and the Taliban. The activities of the Ganj Madrassa exemplify how terrorist groups, such as al-Qa’ida, Lashkar-e Tayyiba, and the Taliban, subvert seemingly legitimate institutions, such as religious schools, to divert charitable donations meant for education to support violent acts."[3]

Logari was reportedly fluent in Arabic, Dari, and English in addition to his native Pashto and Urdu.

Islamic militancy edit

After his studies, Logari left Pakistan for Afghanistan and spent two years as a member of the Afghan Taliban teaching Islamic law, before joining the Islamic State's Khorasan Province (ISIS–K). Logari served as a deputy to ISIS–K's wali, Hafiz Saeed Khan before being appointed as the group's second wali in July 2016 after a US drone strike killed Hafiz Saeed Khan.[4][5]

 
Aftermath of August 2016 Quetta bombing

During Logari's tenure as wali of the Islamic State – Khorasan Province, the group carried out a number of high-profile terrorist attacks. Days before Saeed's death and Logari's succession, the group had orchestrated the deadly bombing of a Hazara (Shia) protest in Kabul, killing 97 and injuring 260, in Kabul's then-deadliest attack since 2001.

Terrorist attacks linked to ISIS–K under Abdul Haseeb Logari
Country Date Article Location Description Dead Injured
  Pakistan 8 August 2016 August 2016 Quetta attacks Quetta, Balochistan Multiple attackers carried out a suicide bombing and shooting at a government hospital where lawyers were gathered. (Also claimed by Jamaat-ul-Ahrar)[6] 94 130+
  Pakistan 24 October 2016 Charsadda, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa An intelligence officer was shot dead. The attack was later claimed by ISIS-K in a statement posted on Amaq.[7] 1 0
  Pakistan 24 October 2016 October 2016 Quetta attacks Quetta, Balochistan Three armed individuals carried out mass shooting at police cadets at the Quetta Police Training College while they were asleep. One attacker killed during operation while other two blew themselves up, killing 61 cadets. (Also claimed by Lashkar-e-Jhangvi)[8][9][10] 61 160+
  Afghanistan 26 October 2016 Ghor Fighters killed at least 30 civilians after abducting them in the Afghan province of Ghor.[11] 30 0
  Afghanistan 26 October 2016 Jalalabad, Nangarhar An ISIS-K suicide bomber killed a number of Afghan tribal elders.[12] 4–15 25
  Afghanistan 4 November 2016 Ghor ISIS-K executed 31 civilians in Ghor Province.[13] 31 0
  Afghanistan 5 November 2016 Ghor ISIS-K abducted at least 6 civilians in Ghor province.[13] 0 6 kidnapped
  Pakistan 12 November 2016 2016 Khuzdar bombing Khuzdar, Balochistan At least 55 people including women and children were killed when a suicide bomber went off in the crowded Shah Noorani Shrine in Hub town, Lasbela District, Balochistan.[14] 55 (+1) 102+
  Afghanistan 16 November 2016 Kabul A suicide bomber blew himself up in a convoy with members of the Afghan National Security Forces, near the Defense ministry.[15] 6 (+1) 15
  Afghanistan 21 November 2016 Kabul A suicide bombing at a Kabul Shia mosque "Baqir-ul-Olum."[16] 30 (+1) 15
  Afghanistan 25 November 2016 Jalalabad, Nangarhar Multiple bombs exploded in Jalalabad city.[17] 6 27
  Pakistan 10 December 2016 Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa ISIS-K has claimed responsibility for killing a counterterrorism police officer and wounding his son in the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar.[18] 1 1
  Afghanistan 7 February 2017 Kabul A suicide blast at Afghanistan's Supreme Court in Kabul.[19] ISIS-K claimed responsibility.[20] 22 41
  Afghanistan 8 February 2017 Qush Tepa, Jowzjan ISIS-K killed six local employees of the International Committee of the Red Cross in the Qush Tepa district in Afghanistan. The assailants also took another two workers with them.[20] 6 2 kidnapped
  Pakistan 16 February 2017 2017 Sehwan suicide bombing Sehwan, Sindh A suicide bombing at a shrine in southern Pakistan.[21] 90 (+1) 250
  Afghanistan 8 March 2017 March 2017 Kabul attack Kabul A group of gunmen dressed in white hospital robes attacked the Sardar Daud Khan Hospital.[22] 49 63
  Afghanistan 12 April 2017 Kabul A suicide bomber attacked near government offices in Kabul. ISIS-K claimed responsibility for the attack.[23] 5 (+1) 10

Death edit

 
A 2018 US airstrike in Mohmand Valley

On 26 April 2017, 50 American special forces from the 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment (United States) and 40 Afghan commandos launched a raid in Mohmand valley, Achin District, Nangarhar Province in an attempt to capture Haseeb at his compound in the area. The firefight lasted three hours, during which two US Rangers were killed, Sgt. Joshua Rodgers, 22, of Bloomington, Illinois, and Sgt. Cameron Thomas, 23 of Kettering, Ohio. A third Ranger was lightly injured.

The US claimed 35 IS fighters were killed along with several high-level leaders, suspected to include Logari, but did not confirm that Logarihad in fact been killed. IS claimed that 100 civilians were killed and injured due to US airstrikes during and after the raid.[24][25]

On 8 May 2017, the US affirmed Logari had been killed in the raid.[26]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "ISIL expands in Afghan-Pakistan areas, widening attacks". Al Jazeera. Al Jazeera Media Network. 2 March 2017. Retrieved 28 April 2017 – via aljazeera.com.
  2. ^ "ISIS appoints interim commander in Afghanistan". Asia News. 11 August 2016. Archived from the original on 29 May 2018. Retrieved 28 April 2017.
  3. ^ "Treasury Designates Senior Al-Qa'ida Official and Terrorist Training Center Supporting Lashkar-E Tayyiba and the Taliban". United States Department of the Treasury. 20 August 2013.
  4. ^ Siqilli, Ibn (6 July 2019). "Jihadi Martyrologies: A 'Martyr' Biography Profiles Islamic State's Late 'Wali' of Khurasan". Retrieved 15 June 2020.https://ibnsiqilli.com/2019/07/06/martyr-biography-profiles-islamic-states-late-wali-of-khurasan
  5. ^ "Baghdadi appoints Molvi Abdul Haseeb as new chief of Khorasan Province – The Fortress". thefortress.com.pk. Archived from the original on 23 April 2017. Retrieved 28 April 2017.
  6. ^ Iqbal, Aamir (8 August 2016). "Suicide blast claimed by Taliban faction in Pakistan claims at least 64 lives". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 9 August 2016. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
  7. ^ "Islamic State claim killing intelligence officer in Charsadda – The Express Tribune". 24 October 2016. Archived from the original on 7 December 2016. Retrieved 13 April 2017.
  8. ^ Shah, Syed Ali; Sherani, Hafeezullah (24 October 2016). "60 killed in twin suicide attacks as terrorists storm police training college in Quetta". Dawn. Archived from the original on 25 October 2016. Retrieved 25 October 2016.
  9. ^ "Quetta attack survivor: 'We were sleeping when terrorists attacked'". CNN. 24 October 2016. Archived from the original on 25 October 2016. Retrieved 25 October 2016.
  10. ^ "At Least 61 Die as Militants Storm Police College Near Quetta, Pakistan". The New York Times. 25 October 2016. Archived from the original on 25 October 2016. Retrieved 25 October 2016.
  11. ^ "Ghor attack: 30 civilians killed in Afghan province". Archived from the original on 14 November 2016. Retrieved 14 November 2016.
  12. ^ "ISIS Kills Afghan Tribal Elders in Jalalabad Suicide Attack". 1 November 2016. Archived from the original on 5 November 2016. Retrieved 14 November 2016.
  13. ^ a b "ISIS kidnap 6 civilians in Ghor, days after killing 31 Afghan civilians – Khaama Press (KP) – Afghan News Agency". The Khaama Press News Agency. 5 November 2016. Archived from the original on 14 November 2016. Retrieved 14 November 2016.
  14. ^ "At least 52 killed, 102 injured in blast at Khuzdar shrine". 12 November 2016. Archived from the original on 15 May 2019. Retrieved 14 November 2016.
  15. ^ Ehsan Popalzai; Euan McKirdy (16 November 2016). "Afghanistan: Suicide bomber kills 4 near Defense Ministry in Kabul". CNN. Archived from the original on 3 December 2016. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
  16. ^ Harooni, Mirwais (21 November 2016). "IS claims attack that kills dozens at Shi'ite mosque in Kabul". Reuters. Archived from the original on 2 April 2019. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  17. ^ "Six killed, dozens wounded by blasts in Afghan city". Reuters. 25 November 2016. Archived from the original on 17 October 2017. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  18. ^ "Islamic State claims killing of counterterrorism officer in Pakistan – Middle East – Stripes". Archived from the original on 12 December 2016. Retrieved 13 December 2016.
  19. ^ "21 killed, nearly 50 wounded in suicide bombing outside Afghan top court in Kabul". 7 February 2017.
  20. ^ a b "Militants Kill 6 ICRC Employees in Afghanistan". Voice of America. 8 February 2017. Archived from the original on 8 February 2017. Retrieved 8 February 2017.
  21. ^ "At least 88 martyred in bombing at Lal Shahbaz Qalandar shrine". Archived from the original on 15 April 2017. Retrieved 13 April 2017.
  22. ^ Mashal, Mujib; Abed, Fahim (8 March 2017). "After Deadly Attack on Kabul Hospital, 'Everywhere Was Full of Blood'". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 28 April 2019. Retrieved 13 April 2017.
  23. ^ "Suicide bomb attack in heart of Kabul kills five". aljazeera.com. Archived from the original on 30 April 2018. Retrieved 30 April 2018.
  24. ^ Kube, Courtney; Ortiz, Erik (27 April 2017). "Two U.S. Army Rangers Killed in Anti-ISIS Raid in Eastern Afghanistan". NBC News. NBC Universal. Retrieved 28 April 2017 – via NBCNews.com.
  25. ^ Baldor, Lolita C. (28 April 2017). "Friendly fire may have killed 2 Army Rangers in Afghanistan". washingtonpost.com. Archived from the original on 28 April 2017. Retrieved 28 April 2017.
  26. ^ Associated Press (7 May 2017). "Pentagon: IS in Afghanistan leader killed in April raid". The Washington Times. Retrieved 3 July 2019.