Kazakhstan’s National Security Committee (KNB) has acknowledged for the first time that the banned terrorist group Jund al-Khilafah (Soldiers of the Caliphate) poses a threat to that country's security.
KNB deputy chairman Kabdulkarim Abdikazymov told journalists in Astana on December 4 that "a certain number of Kazakhstani citizens and Kazakhstan-born individuals" are members of the group, which is based on the Afghan-Pakistani border.
The group was officially banned in Kazakhstan in November 2011 after Jund al-Khilafah claimed responsibility for bombings in the western city of Atyrau and attacks against police in the southern city of Taraz.
KNB deputy chairman Kabdulkarim Abdikazymov told journalists in Astana on December 4 that "a certain number of Kazakhstani citizens and Kazakhstan-born individuals" are members of the group, which is based on the Afghan-Pakistani border.
The group was officially banned in Kazakhstan in November 2011 after Jund al-Khilafah claimed responsibility for bombings in the western city of Atyrau and attacks against police in the southern city of Taraz.