Islamic State (IS) claims for first time that it established a “province” in India

Islamic State (IS) has claimed for the first time that it has established a “province” in India, after a clash between militants and security forces in the Kashmir region killed a militant with alleged ties to the group. The new ‘province’ is called “Wilayah of Hind ” by the militant group. IS’s Amaq News Agency also claimed IS inflicted casualties on Indian Army soldiers in the town of Amshipora in the Shopian district of Kashmir. The statement of establishing the new province appears to be designed to bolster its standing after the group was driven from its self-styled “caliphate” in Iraq and Syria in April 2019, where at one point it controlled thousands of miles of territory. IS has stepped up hit-and-run raids and suicide attacks, including taking responsibility for the Easter Sunday bombing in Sri Lanka that killed at least 253 people.