According to the Russian state news agency TASS, Federal Security Service (FSB) Director Alexander Bortnikov said the Daesh’s Afghanistan branch, Daesh-Khorasan, was actively recruiting individuals from Central Asian states into terrorist networks.

Bortnikov said the group was enlisting citizens from Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, as well as Russian migrant workers.

The remarks come amid increasing international concern over the security situation in Afghanistan under the Taliban administration.

Pakistani security officials, including Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General Lt-Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, have repeatedly warned about the presence of militant sanctuaries inside Afghanistan and the cross-border threat posed by terrorist groups.

Security analysts say Afghanistan has increasingly become a safe haven and operational hub for militant organisations since the Taliban returned to power in 2021.