Islamabad– Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) has released a six-minute propaganda video titled “From Dasht-e-Laila to the Victory of Kabul,” marking the anniversary of the 2001 Qala-i-Jangi uprising in Afghanistan. The video, produced in Urdu, Pashto, Arabic, and English, includes previously unseen footage of Al Qaeda and Taliban commanders killed in Afghanistan and Pakistan over the past two decades.
Footage of Senior Al Qaeda Figures
The video shows Mansur al-Shami beside the shrouded body of Abdullah Saeed al-Libi, a senior Al Qaeda leader and trusted associate of Osama bin Laden in Waziristan. Al-Libi was killed in a US drone strike in North Waziristan in December 2009, while Mansur al-Shami was killed in 2010.
Another segment shows Abu Yahya al-Libi offering condolences after the death of Abu al-Laith al-Libi, a senior military commander who led attacks against US and coalition forces in Afghanistan. Abdullah Shami, who escaped from Bagram prison with Abu Yahya in 2005, is also shown. All three men were killed in US drone strikes or raids between 2008 and 2013.
The video also features Asim Umar, founding leader of AQIS, advising militants following the fall of North Waziristan, and Osama Ibrahim Ghauri, founding media chief of AQIS, firing a PK machine gun.
Taliban Commanders in the Video
The footage includes Mullah Dadullah Akhund, former military chief of the Afghan Taliban, alongside Mufti Wali-ur-Rehman Mehsud, former deputy head of Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). The images appear to be from South Waziristan, where Dadullah reportedly recruited local tribal fighters for operations in Afghanistan.
Two other Taliban commanders are featured:
- Mawlawi Abdul Manan, former shadow governor of Helmand Province, killed in a US drone strike in December 2018.
- Abu Yusuf Ghaznavi (Mullah Idrees), operational commander in Nangarhar, killed by an IED planted by ISKP in 2019.
Pakistan-Based Operatives and Regional Networks
Previously unreleased footage shows Ihsan Aziz, a key architect of Al Qaeda’s post-2001 network in Pakistan, filmed in Afghanistan’s Paktika Province. Aziz traveled to North Waziristan in 2005 for training and later accompanied militants into Afghanistan for operations.
The video also introduces several Pakistan-based Al Qaeda members appearing for the first time: Rana Faisal (Muhammad Punjabi), Salman Ali Ashraf (Hisham), Aafan Ghani, Khurram Saeed Kayani, Mawlawi Asad Afghani, and Shoaib (Osama). According to AQIS literature, these operatives were killed in US drone strikes or raids in North Waziristan, Zabul, Wardak, and Helmand between 2014 and 2018.
The release of this video highlights AQIS’s continued effort to document and showcase its network of leaders and operatives in Afghanistan and Pakistan. By featuring previously unseen footage of senior Al Qaeda and Taliban commanders, the video provides insight into the organization’s historical presence and operational connections across the region.
