The head of so-called Islamic State (IS) in Afghanistan, Abdul Hasib, has been killed in a military raid, US and Afghan officials have said.

He died 10 days ago in a joint Special Forces operation in eastern Nangarhar province, reports the BBC quoting the US military.

Hasib is believed to have been behind March's attack on a military hospital in Kabul, killing at least 50 people.
Last month, the Pentagon said Hasib had probably been killed in a raid by US and Afghan special forces.

Two US army rangers also died in the raid, near an underground system of tunnels believed to be used by IS which were targeted by the largest conventional bomb ever used by the US.

Abdul Hasib was appointed as the leader of IS in Afghanistan last year after his predecessor was killed in a US drone strike.

He is credited with masterminding the Kabul hospital attack, although some Afghan security experts questioned whether a group still thought to be relatively small in Afghanistan could be capable of planning and carrying out such a large scale operation.

BDST: 1650 HRS, MAR 8, 2017
AP