Islamic State–Taliban conflict

Islamic State–Taliban conflict
	Part of the Afghan conflict, war on terror, and al-Qaeda–Islamic State conflict
	; Islamic State fighters who have surrendered to the Taliban after Battle of Darzab
Date	2 February 2015 – present; (8 years, 10 months, 3 weeks and 3 days)
Location	Afghanistan (mainly Nangarhar, Kunar and Jowzjan provinces)
Status	Ongoing Initial Taliban victories in the battles of Darzab and Nangarhar; Collapse of the Islamic State stronghold in eastern Afghanistan in 2019; Taliban takes control of most of the former Islamic Republic territory in 2021; IS-KP regains strength in eastern Afghanistan following Taliban takeover; IS-KP rebellion in eastern Afghanistan suppressed; Continued IS-KP guerilla warfare and insurgent attacks, including cross-border into Pakistan;
Belligerents
Afghanistan Taliban; Haqqani network; Al-Qaeda; Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (pro-Taliban & anti-IS factions) Supported by:; United States (limited); Iran (alleged); Russia (alleged); Pakistan (alleged)	Islamic State Khorasan Province; IS central command; Mullah Dadullah Front (until 2016); Fidai Mahaz Supported by:; High Council of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (HCIEA) (until 2021)
Commanders and leaders
Hibatullah Akhundzada (2016–); Mullah Yaqoob; Sirajuddin Haqqani; Abdul Ghani Baradar; Qari Fasihuddin; Mohammad Bashir; Neda Mohammad; Formerly: Akhtar Mansour † (2015–16, killed in an American airstrike); Abdul Ghani †; Haji Shakir †; Hamdullah Mukhlis †; Sheikh Rahimullah Haqqani †; Mujib Rahman Ansari †; Abdulhaq Abu Omar †; Mohammad Dawood Muzamil †; Nisar Ahmad Ahmadi †;	Shahab al-Muhajir; Mawlavi Habib Ur Rahman; Ismatullah Khalozai; Sultan Aziz Azam; Maulawi Rajab; Najibullah; Formerly: Hafiz Saeed Khan †; Abdul Haseeb Logari †; Abdul Rahman Ghaleb †; Abu Saad Erhabi †; Abdul Rauf Aliza †; Mawlawi Ziya ul-Haq ; Abdullah Orokzai (POW); Nematullah Qaweem ; Qari Hekmat †; Farooq Bengalzai †; Haji Qomandan †; Mansoor Dadullah †; Abdul Manan Niazi †; Nangialai Khan †; Muhammad Rasul ; Qari Fateh † ;
Units involved
Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan forces Islamic Emirate Army Red Unit; Badri 313 Battalion; ; General Directorate of Intelligence; Pro-Taliban militias;	Islamic State – Khorasan Province forces Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (pro-IS factions); Taliban defectors; Former Afghan soldiers (2021–); Former Afghan intelligence agency personnel (2021–);
Strength
Taliban: 1,000 special forces (2015); 70,000–75,000 fighters (2021);	Khorasan Province and its allies:; 1,000–8,500 fighters (2016); 2,000–3,500 fighters (2021); HCIEA:; 3,000–3,500
Casualties and losses
Unknown	Unknown
	1,547 civilian deaths (2015–2020) 3,774 civilian deaths (2021–2023)

The Islamic State–Taliban conflict is an ongoing armed conflict between the Islamic State Khorasan Province (IS-KP) and the Taliban regime in Afghanistan. The conflict initially began when both operated as insurgent groups in Nangarhar; since the creation of the Taliban's emirate in 2021, IS-KP have targeted and assassinated Taliban members using hit-and-run tactics. The group have also caused incidents and attacks across the border in Pakistan.

The conflict began in 2015 following the creation of a regional branch of the Islamic State 'caliphate' and started to clash against Taliban insurgents over control of territory during the war in Afghanistan (2001–2021), mostly in eastern Afghanistan but also through cells in the north-west and south-west. The Haqqani network, al-Qaeda and others supported the Taliban, while IS was supported by the Mullah Dadullah Front and the pro-ISIS faction of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. IS-KP had lost territory to both the Taliban and the former republican government by 2020. Following the Taliban capture of Kabul in 2021, IS-KP have continued its armed campaign against the new Taliban regime.

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