Victims and Casualties:

-Approximately twelve Taliban members killed immediately -Eleven detained men executed with explosives

• Eighty local men detained
• Numerous civilians displaced Schools closed
• Civilian property confiscated

Perpetrators: Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP)

Narrative:

On July 3, 2015, in the Momand area of Achin district in Nangarhar Province, local elders facilitated a joint uprising of Taliban fighters and local men against Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP) forces. The group threatened ISKP fighters to either engage in combat or leave the area. ISKP forces initially retreated into a nearby valley. Less than a week later, ISKP returned and conducted retaliatory operations against both the Taliban and local population. According to witness accounts provided to the Afghanistan Analysts Network (AAN), ISKP fighters gave residents ten minutes to evacuate their homes without taking any possessions. ISKP forces killed approximately twelve Taliban members immediately and detained eighty local men of various ages. On July 16, 2015 (the eve of Eid), eleven of the detained individuals were executed when ISKP detonated explosives placed underneath the blindfolded captives in a field. ISKP documented this execution in a propaganda film released on August 10, 2015, which was subsequently reported widely in domestic and international media. Following these events, most residents from the upper parts of the valley abandoned their homes, livestock, and agricultural land. ISKP militants confiscated vacant properties and installed new fighters in the houses. Educational institutions in the area were closed.