Abdul Sayed
Abdul Sayed is a specialist in jihadism, security, and politics, with a focus on Afghanistan and South Asia. He holds a master’s degree in political science from Lund University and is fluent in Urdu, Dari, and Pashto, providing him with deep regional insight. He is the founder and director of The Oxus Watch, a research platform dedicated to armed groups and security issues in South and Central Asia. He is also active on X: @abdsayedd
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Articles by Abdul Sayed
Shahid Umar: Senior-Most TTP Commander Killed in Afghanistan to Date in Apparent Assassination
Executive Summary: On December 3, 2024, senior Pakistani Taliban (TTP) commander Shahid Umar was killed in Afghanistan, the most significant killing of a TTP commander under Afghan Taliban rule to
Israel–Hamas War’s Impact on Afghan and Pakistani Jihadist Ecosystem
Executive Summary The official reactions of key militant factions based in Pakistan and Afghanistan to the “al-Aqsa Storm” attack by Hamas on Israel on October 7, 2023 reflected an interesting
Pakistani Taliban Broaden Support Among Baloch, Merge With Separatist Groups
On February 24, the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP, also known as the “Pakistani Taliban”) called on the disillusioned Baloch people in southern Balochistan province to launch an anti-state jihadist war to
The Death of Daud Muzammil and ISKP’s Assassination Campaign Against the Afghan Taliban
Islamic State in Khorasan Province (ISKP), which operates in Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan, assassinated senior Afghan Taliban commander Daud Muzammil in a suicide attack on March 9 (Twitter.com/@Abdsayedd). This attack
A Post-Mortem Analysis of ISKP Senior Military Commander Saad Emirati
Saad Emirati was a senior founding military commander of the Islamic State in Khorasan Province (ISKP) who died in 2016 after leading the ISKP war against the Afghan Taliban, the
Muslim Dost: The IS Khorasan Defector to the Taliban and Alleged Ex-Afghan Intelligence Stooge
Abdul Rahim Muslim Dost, a founding member of Islamic State in Khorasan Province (ISKP), surrendered to the Afghan Taliban on March 4 and pledged allegiance to the group’s emir, Hibatullah
The Mysterious Assassination of Pakistani Taliban Spokesman Mufti Khalid Balti (Alias Muhammed Khurasani)
On January 9, 2022, Mufti Khalid Balti, a senior member of the Tehreek e Taliban Pakistan (TTP), or Pakistani Taliban, was killed in an unclaimed attack in a border district
Pakistan’s Peace Talks with the Pakistani Taliban: Insights from an Interview with Abdul Wali Mohmand (alias Umar Khalid Khurasani)
The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) (“Pakistani Taliban”) spokesman, Muhammad Khurasani, announced a one-month ceasefire and peace negotiations with the Pakistani state on November 8 (Umar Media, November 9). One day later,
The Haqqani Network’s Martyr: Inside Afghan Taliban Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani’s Reception Honoring Suicide Bombers
The Taliban Interior Minister, Sirajuddin Haqqani, hosted a large reception for the heirs and families of hundreds of Taliban suicide bombers in the five-star Inter-Continental hotel in Kabul on October
Al-Qaeda Confirms the Killing of its Indian Amir: The Rise and Secret Fall of Shaikh Asim Umar
Two years after his death, al-Qaeda has confirmed that Shaikh Asim Umar, the founding amir of al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), al-Qaeda’s south Asian franchise, was killed. Umar died
The Taliban’s Persistent War on Salafists in Afghanistan
Salafists in Afghanistan face severe challenges and insecurities after the fall of Kabul to the Taliban on August 15. The Taliban are suspicious of Afghan Salafists for supporting the Taliban’s
Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan’s Latest Merger Enables Renewed Attacks in Pakistan
The Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), announced on August 7 that it had merged with a former al-Qaeda-affiliated, anti-state Pakistani jihadist group once led by Ustad Aslam (Umar
Islamic State’s Pakistan Province Launches New Jihadist Magazine
The first Urdu-language magazine of Islamic State’s Pakistan Province (IS-P) called Yalghar (Invasion) was published at the end of April 2021 on social media accounts that regularly disseminate IS-P propaganda
An In-Depth Portrait of a Pakistani Taliban Founding Father: Umar Khalid Khurasani
In August 2020, eight important Pakistani jihadist groups opposed to Islamabad joined the Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). Among them was an influential group led by Commander Umar
The Mysterious Case of Shaikh Abdul Rahim Muslim Dost – The Founder of IS-K
On November 14, the spokesman for the Pakistan Army in a joint press conference with the Pakistani foreign minister accused an Afghan national, Shaikh Abdul Rahim Muslim Dost, of organizing
The Jihadists’ War in Pakistan after the U.S. Withdrawal from Afghanistan: Lessons from Al-Qaeda’s Assassination of Benazir Bhutto
The changing narratives and operations of al-Qaeda and its Pakistani ally, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), in recent years indicate that the anti-state jihadist war in Pakistan will not end with a
Waziristan Militant Leader Aleem Khan Ustad Joins Tehreek-e-Taliban
On December 15, Mufti Noor Wali Mehsud, the emir of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), appeared in a video released by Umar Media, the official media arm of TTP (Umar Media, December
Islamic State Khorasan Province’s Peshawar Seminary Attack and War Against Afghan Taliban Hanafis
On October 27, a major attack targeting a pro-Afghan Taliban religious seminary took place in Peshawar, the capital of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, which borders Afghanistan. Although it remains unclaimed,