GUWAHATI: The car bomb blast near the Red Fort in Delhi in November 2025 has been “officially attributed” to al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), according to a new report by a United Nations Security Council body monitoring counter-terrorism sanctions.
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The biannual report by the Security Council’s monitoring team for sanctions on al-Qaeda and the Islamic State, made public this week, also said AQIS was attempting to establish cells in Bangladesh.
The report noted that both al-Qaeda and the Islamic State have maintained a sustained interest in developing chemical and biological weapons. It further stated that Indian authorities had arrested three people, including a doctor, at the end of 2025 after they were allegedly tasked by an Islamic State cell operating abroad with developing ricin, a type of poison.
The report by the UN Security Council’s 1267 Committee, which monitors the activities of the Islamic State and other Islamist militant groups, said AQIS also operates under the banner of Ittehad-ul-Mujahideen in Pakistan.
According to the report, AQIS has continued to evolve from a fragmented group into a regional terrorist organisation, developing logistics and financial networks through decentralised, small and scattered cells rather than large units. It specifically stated that the 2025 attack near the Red Fort in Delhi was officially attributed to AQIS.
The report comes weeks before the 25th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks and noted that al-Qaeda continues to remain active in several parts of the world and poses a threat to the stability of nation-states.
AQIS was founded by Sambhal-born jihadist Sana-ul-Haq, described in the report as a veteran of the Kashmir-focused Harkat-ul-Mujahideen and a writer of Islamist literature. The group had previously operated what were reported to be large militant training camps in Afghanistan.
The sanctions monitoring team said much of AQIS’ leadership is based in Kabul and that members of the group have been issued Tazkiras, or national identity cards, by Afghanistan's Islamic Emirate.
The report also cited information provided by a member state that AQIS operates a large training camp at Barg-e Matal in Afghanistan’s Nuristan province, reportedly focused on training Xinjiang-origin militants who had previously been involved in Syria.
Founded in 2014, AQIS is a regional affiliate of al-Qaeda formed to expand the organisation’s activities across South Asia, including India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and parts of Afghanistan.