ISIS-K Operative Gets 20 Years as US Targets Terror Network’s Money and Logistics

• An ISIS-K operative has been sentenced to 20 years in prison after a US federal court convicted him of providing material support to the terrorist group, exposing a nearly decade-long network of surveillance, communications, weapons movement and suicide-bomber logistics.

Afghan national Mohammad Sharifullah was sentenced on September 16 after being convicted of providing material support and resources to ISIS-K, the Islamic State affiliate operating in Afghanistan and the wider region.

US prosecutors said Sharifullah participated in more than a dozen ISIS-K attacks between 2016 and his apprehension in 2025. His activities allegedly included conducting surveillance, transporting suicide bombers and weapons, relaying communications and recording explosions for ISIS-K propaganda.

The case has particular significance for counter-terrorist-financing and financial-crime investigators because it illustrates that terrorist operations depend on more than direct funding. Transport, communications, surveillance, weapons movement and recruitment all create financial and logistical trails that can expose wider networks.

On August 26, 2021, Sharifullah allegedly surveyed a route to Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul and informed ISIS-K leaders that it was clear of Taliban checkpoints. Hours later, ISIS-K operative Abdul Rahman al-Logari detonated a suicide bomb at Abbey Gate, killing 13 US service members and approximately 160 civilians, according to the Justice Department.

Sharifullah was also accused of supporting the 2016 bombing targeting Nepali security guards protecting the Canadian embassy in Kabul and communicating with ISIS-K attackers during the 2024 Crocus City Hall attack in Moscow.

However, a federal jury convicted him of material support but did not unanimously determine that deaths at Abbey Gate resulted from that conspiracy, a distinction highlighted by his defence lawyers.

The case underscores the importance of tracking the financial and logistical infrastructure surrounding terrorist organisations, including transfers, travel, communications and procurement that enable attacks.