Mohammad Sharifullah, the man whom officials in the Trump administration described as a “monster” and who was arrested in Pakistan following Trump’s direct order to apprehend those responsible for the killing of 13 U.S. soldiers, is now facing American justice. Security sources from the former Afghan government told Independent Persian that Sharifullah has a long track record of carrying out ISIS-K’s deadliest attacks and is one of the group’s most bloodthirsty commanders.
In a statement, the U.S. Department of Justice accused Mohammad Sharifullah of orchestrating the killing of 13 U.S. soldiers on August 26, 2021, in Kabul and announced that he would be tried in the Eastern District of Virginia. Pamela Bondi, the U.S. Attorney General, referred to him as the “evil ISIS-K terrorist” and said he was the mastermind behind the deaths of the “13 brave U.S. soldiers.” Bondi’s statement read: "Under the decisive leadership of President Trump on the global stage, the Department of Justice will ensure that terrorists like Mohammad Sharifullah will find no sanctuary, no second chances, and no enemy worse than the United States."
Kash Patel, Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), commented on Sharifullah’s arrest:
"The deadly attack that killed 13 U.S. soldiers and Afghan civilians during the American troop withdrawal from Afghanistan was an act of terrorism. ISIS-K openly claimed responsibility for this crime. Thanks to the cooperation of the FBI, the Department of Justice, and the CIA, we have successfully apprehended and transferred Sharifullah to the United States to face justice."
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| Mohammad Sharifullah is being transferred to U.S. soil-@FBIDirectorKash/X |
Background of Mohammad Sharifullah
Details about the exact time and place of Mohammad Sharifullah’s birth remain unknown. However, two former Afghan security officers familiar with his 2019 arrest and imprisonment shared details with Independent Persian. According to these sources, Sharifullah joined ISIS-K in 2016, two years after the group emerged, and became part of its core network in Kabul, led by Sanaullah Ghafari, the current ISIS-K leader.
Sharifullah operated in Kabul under the aliases Jafar, Ajmal, and Nasir. He was arrested in July 2019 alongside two associates by the former Afghan government’s security forces. He remained imprisoned in Bagram until August 15, 2021, when American forces withdrew, and the Taliban took over Kabul.
Sharifullah’s Confessions About ISIS-K Attacks
During interrogations by Afghanistan’s former NDS, Mohammad Sharifullah and his associates admitted to planning and executing 29 deadly attacks, primarily targeting security, diplomatic, and governmental sites.
The Attacks Sharifullah Admitted to Leading:
Mortar attack on the Presidential Palace on Eid al-Adha
Rocket attack from the 500-Family area on the U.S. Embassy building in Kabul
Coordination and transport of five suicide bombers for an attack on an army base at Qambar Square in Kabul
Suicide bombing targeting journalists in the Shash Darak district of Kabul
Suicide bombing at Pul-e-Mahmood Khan in Kabul
Suicide bombing at Marshal Fahim Military University in Kabul
Mortar attack on Abdul Ali Mazari’s shrine in western Kabul
Suicide bombing in Shahr-e-Naw Park, Kabul
Assassination attempt on Mohammad Mohaqiq, leader of the Islamic Unity Party of Afghanistan
Attack on a vehicle carrying students in the Silo area of Kabul
Attack on a vehicle carrying Ministry of Hajj and Religious Affairs officials at Baraki intersection in Kabul
Suicide bombing targeting protesting women in Kabul
Attack on diplomats from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Wazir Akbar Khan area of Kabul
Organizing an attack on Imam Zaman Mosque in Kabul’s 11th district
Suicide bombing targeting protesting parliamentarians near the Kabul election commission
Second attack on protesters in Shahr-e-Naw Park, Kabul
Attacks Confessed by Abdul Wahid, a Close Associate of Sharifullah:
Attack on Mufti Nauman in Shakar Dara, Kabul
Attack on the Enlightenment Movement gathering in Dehmazang, Kabul
Attack on Nepalese citizens on Pul-e-Charkhi Road, Kabul
Facilitating the transport of suicide bombers for an attack on Ziyarat Sakhi shrine, Kabul
Attack on Haji Ramadan, a prominent businessman in western Kabul
Planning and facilitating an attack on the Iraqi Embassy in Kabul
Attack on foreign nationals in Makrorayan, Kabul, and planting explosives on the Kabul airport road
Suicide bombing at Sardar Dawood Khan Hospital in Kabul
Attack on a Jamiat-e-Islami Afghanistan gathering in Lab-e-Jar, Kabul
Suicide bombing at Kabul’s 13th security district police station
Rocket attack on the U.S. Embassy and Kabul airport
Most of these attacks resulted in the deaths of military personnel, government employees, Afghan civilians, and foreign nationals working with international organizations in Afghanistan.
In videos released of Sharifullah’s confessions during his imprisonment under the former Afghan government, he admitted to joining ISIS-K in 2016. According to security sources who closely followed his arrest and detention, Sharifullah continued ISIS-K propaganda and recruitment efforts within Bagram prison, leading to his temporary solitary confinement.
On August 15, 2021, alongside hundreds of other ISIS-K prisoners, he was released from Bagram and other high-security prisons managed by Afghan security agencies. Among those freed was Abdul Rahman Logari, the suicide bomber who, just 11 days later, detonated his explosives among U.S. soldiers and Afghan civilians at Kabul airport, killing 13 U.S. service members.
Sharifullah’s Fate in the United States
The U.S. Department of Justice has highlighted Sharifullah’s key role in organizing, planning, and facilitating Abdul Rahman Logari’s movement to the attack site. It has also linked him to the March 2024 Crocus Concert Hall attack in Moscow, which resulted in about 130 deaths and dozens of injuries.
The Justice Department’s statement also accused Sharifullah of involvement in the 2016 attack on the Canadian Embassy in Kabul and multiple other deadly attacks, suggesting he may face a life sentence.
During FBI interrogations, Sharifullah reportedly admitted to training the attackers in the Moscow bombing and personally knowing two of the perpetrators.
According to TIME magazine, Sharifullah also confessed to orchestrating several ISIS-K attacks in Iran. The January 2024 ISIS attack in Kerman, Iran, resulted in at least 100 deaths and 211 injuries.
While some media outlets have claimed that Sharifullah was affiliated with the Haqqani Network, a powerful Taliban faction, before joining ISIS-K, former Afghan government security sources stated that no evidence supports this claim.
Since 2015, the Taliban and ISIS-K have engaged in bloody conflicts in eastern and southern Afghanistan, which continue to this day. While Taliban officials have repeatedly claimed to have suppressed ISIS-K, the group has continued to carry out deadly attacks, killing at least nine senior Taliban officials in the past three and a half years, raising international concerns about further regional instability.
Following the deadly August 26, 2021, attack at Kabul airport, which ISIS-K claimed responsibility for, the U.S. State Department’s Rewards for Justice program announced a $10 million bounty for information leading to the identification or location of ISIS-K leader Sanaullah Ghafari, also known as Shahab al-Muhajir.
Despite Taliban claims of dismantling ISIS-K’s leadership network, they have yet to provide any evidence of Ghafari’s whereabouts.
However, the arrest of Mohammad Sharifullah, one of ISIS-K’s top operational figures, may reveal crucial details about the group’s hideouts and operational methods in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
While U.S. security agencies have yet to disclose further details from Sharifullah’s interrogations, Biden administration officials have hailed his capture as a significant step in holding those responsible for attacks on American citizens accountable.
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