The Islamic State jihadist group has recruited members in 25 of Afghanistan's 34 provinces and is continuously growing in the war-torn country, a U.N. report said Friday.
The United Nation's Al Qaeda monitoring team said in its latest report that up to 70 ISIS militants have come into Afghanistan from Iraq and Syria to establish its branches across the country, according to Khama Press.
"Sightings of the groups with some form of ISIL branding or sympathy were reported in 25 provinces in the war-torn country," the report said.
"The number of groups and individuals who are openly declaring either loyalty to or sympathy with ISIL (ISIS or Daesh in Arabic) continues to grow in a number of provinces in Afghanistan," it added, AFP reported.
"Afghan security authorities do not consider the growing emergence of Islamic State as an immediate increased threat but they are keeping an eye on the situation as a potential new threat," it further said.
Afghan scholars, however, believed that some Talibani and other foreign fighters rebranded themselves as ISIS militants to create panic in society, according to Tolo News.
"I think there is not such a thing by the name of Daesh in Afghanistan. This is part of Pakistan's proxy war. And this data has also been given to the world by this country," said analyst Nasrullah Stanekzai.
