The 38th report from the United Nations Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team has officially tied Al-Qaida in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) to the November 2025 attack near New Delhi’s Red Fort. Submitted to the Security Council committee monitoring Islamic State, Al-Qaida, and associated groups, the assessment warns that AQIS is progressively evolving into a regional terrorist entity backed by broadening financial structures and decentralized logistical cells.
“AQIS continued to evolve from a fragmented group into a regional terrorist entity,” the report said. It added that the organisation had established logistics and financial networks and was working through “decentralised small, scattered cells instead of large units…The attack in November 2025 on the Red Fort in Delhi was officially attributed to AQIS,” it said.
The assessment also raised alarms regarding the group’s potential footprint expansion across India’s surrounding region, noting that AQIS has sought to leverage Bangladesh for establishing new local cells.
Placed within the context of a worsening regional security climate, the UN evaluation highlights that while the overall global terror threat remains relatively stable, it has sharpened significantly across both the Sahel and South Asia. Key drivers behind this escalation include persistent cross-border skirmishes between Pakistan and Afghanistan, alongside continued backing from Taliban authorities for Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which has driven a surge in attacks and subsequent military confrontations.
The Taliban continued to deny harbouring terrorist groups, it said. Member states were concerned that the conflict could create opportunities for extremist organisations and generate further security challenges across the region.
According to the report, the ability of several terrorist groups to operate in Afghanistan remained an enduring threat to neighbouring countries and Central Asia. It said the Taliban had been unable to suppress the terrorist problem despite operations against Islamic State-Khorasan and attempts to contain other groups.
The report said AQIS also formed the backbone of Ittihad-ul-Mujahideen Pakistan, which was reportedly responsible for several attacks. AQIS leaders were believed to remain in Kabul and had reportedly been issued Afghan identity documents, suggesting close cooperation between the Taliban and the organisation.
It also said Al-Qaida had provided ideological guidance, training and support to TTP. In April, Al-Qaida’s official media outlet publicly backed the Taliban and, for the first time, TTP operations against Pakistan.
The Security Council’s sanctions regime against Islamic State and Al-Qaida traces its mandate to resolutions adopted since 1999. Its Monitoring Team submits independent assessments every six months to help member states evaluate terrorist threats and implement asset freezes, travel bans and arms embargoes.
