Ali Khamenei: The U.S. is Transferring ISIS Terrorists to Afghanistan

The leader of the Islamic Republic reacted to the deadly attacks in Kabul in recent days, claiming without providing evidence that the U.S. is 'transferring' members of the Islamic State (ISIS) to Afghanistan with the aim of 'justifying its continued presence in the region and creating security' for Israel. According to the IRNA news agency, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei stated on Tuesday, January 30, that the 'recent massacres' in Afghanistan are 'actually the beginning of this plan.' The leader of the Islamic Republic also referred to what he called 'distracting the nations of the region' as a 'primary U.S. policy.' He claimed, 'The U.S. seeks to ensure that this region does not see peace, and that governments and nations in the region are preoccupied with themselves so that they do not think about opposing (conflict with) Israel.' Iranian officials have previously accused the U.S., the U.K., and Saudi Arabia of creating and supporting ISIS without providing evidence. Khamenei also stated on November 21 in response to a letter from the commander of the Quds Force of the Revolutionary Guards that striking ISIS in Syria and Iraq is a 'blow' to the 'previous and current U.S. governments' and their allied countries in the region, accusing them of having 'created' ISIS. This claim comes despite the fact that ISIS has faced heavy bombing from U.S.-led coalition forces in Syria and Iraq for years. Some critics within Iran have also harshly criticized Qassem Soleimani and the Quds Force's performance in the region, attributing the 'creation' of ISIS to Soleimani's mismanagement. For instance, political critic Mehdi Khazali stated in a video last year that if Soleimani had not been present in Syria, 'there would be no ISIS in Syria now.' On Tuesday, during an attack on a military checkpoint near the main military training academy in Kabul, 11 Afghan soldiers were killed and six others were injured. While the Taliban had carried out several deadly attacks in Kabul in recent weeks, ISIS claimed responsibility for Tuesday's attack. On Saturday, another attack in Kabul resulted in at least 95 deaths, for which the Taliban took responsibility. ISIS and the Taliban have previously clashed multiple times, resulting in dozens of deaths. For example, in late January, Taliban forces and individuals affiliated with ISIS fought for several days in Jowzjan province in northern Afghanistan. According to reports from IRNA and Radio Farda.