Isis is wreaking havoc in Afghanistan

The bomb tore through an examination hall in Kabul on Friday, where students – mostly minority Hazara, mostly young women – were sitting a practice test in preparation for university. Thirty-five were killed, dozens more injured. An unspeakable human tragedy.

We don’t formally know who did it, but we can guess. Under the Taliban’s leadership, Afghanistan is a haven for terrorists. And the terrorists compete.

The Taliban is, in my judgement, indistinguishable from al-Qaeda. Its eyes are still firmly placed on international terrorism: a campaign of domestic terror within Afghanistan against ‘enemies within’ – be they former members of the internationally-recognised Afghan government, or religious minorities, or campaigners for liberty and women’s rights.

But the people who bombed this school are most likely Isis. The Islamic State was soundly defeated in Iraq, Syria and the Philippines, but it’s making a comeback in Afghanistan.

Once kept largely under the thumb of the United States Air Force, Isis’ resurgence began even before the Taliban took power: Joe Biden was operating on old information when he said that Isis was not a significant factor in Afghan affairs on 25 August last year.