The head of US Central Command (Centcom), General Michael Kurilla, has commended and praised Pakistan as a “phenomenal partner” of United States against terrorism
General Michael Kurilla made these remarks during a hearing before the House Foreign Affairs Committee (HFAC).
During an exchange with Congressman Marcus Luttrell, Gen. Kurilla offered a deep dive into the evolving threat posed by ISIS-K, stating that the group remains “one of the most active terrorist organizations,” with ambitions of launching attacks beyond South Asia, including against the U.S. homeland.
General Kurilla said Pakistan has captured several high-value ISIS Khorasan (ISIS-K) operatives. He said the US provided limited intelligence, and Pakistan acted on it effectively.
He shared that Pakistan’s Army Chief, Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, personally informed him about the capture of Jaffar. Jaffar was behind the Abbey Gate bombing in Afghanistan.
“He said ‘I’ve caught him, I’m willing to extradite him back to the United States, please tell the secretary of defence and the president,” General Kurilla said while recounting the conversation with Filed Marshal Syed Asim Munir.
According to General Kurilla, Munir offered to extradite Jaffar to the US.
He also said Pakistan is actively targeting IS-K. He noted a decline in IS-K’s activity due to these efforts.
The Centcom chief said Pakistan has faced over 1,000 terrorist attacks since 2024. These attacks have killed about 700 people and injured 2,500 more. Most of the attacks happened in Pakistan’s western areas.
General Kurilla praised the efforts of both Pakistan’s security forces and civilians.
