The spectre of so-called Islamic State (IS) is far from over is a fact that has found its best expression from what happened in Iraq a couple of days ago. According to media reports, Iraq was in mourning last Tuesday for at least 36 people killed when a bomb rippled through a crowded Baghdad market in what the Islamic State group's "jihadists" claimed as a suicide attack. The bloody carnage, one of the deadliest attack in years in the war-scarred country, killed mostly women and children on the eve of Eidul Azha.

This ghastly incident, no doubt, has sparked revulsion and renewed fears about the reach of the IS. Having said that, I would urge our authorities concerned to keep a watchful eye on the IS in Afghanistan where it has deepened its footprints in recent years. The current highly volatile situation in Afghanistan could possibly throw up an opportunity for this outfit to spread its tentacles beyond this landlocked country.

Hamid Khan (Quetta)

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021