Suspected IS militants arrested in eastern Afghan province

KHOST, Afghanistan -- Eight suspected members of Islamic State (IS) have been arrested in Afghanistan's eastern Khost province, a provincial official confirmed on Sunday.

"Mujahideen of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan have arrested eight members of Daesh which is Arabic acronym of IS group in surrounding areas of Khost city, capital of Khost in recent days," Shabbir Ahmad Usmani, head of provincial cultural and information directorate, told Xinhua.

He said the arrestees confessed that they were planning to conduct attacks in the province, 150 km in the southeast of Afghanistan's Kabul.

The arrested men were shifted to related departments for screening and interrogation, according to Usmani.

The security situation remained generally calm but uncertain across Afghanistan since Taliban's takeover in mid-August.

However, a spate of bomb attacks were staged by IS-affiliated militants in Kabul and Jalalabad city, the capital of eastern Nangarhar province, in recent weeks.