BRIT terror cells are communicating with ISIS in Afghanistan sparking fears of a new “Manchester-style attack”, the defence secretary has warned.

Gavin Williamson said that 440 British troops were sent to the country last month to combat the growing terrorist threat posed to Britain as well as to Afghan civilians.

Mr Williamson, who was speaking on a visit to British troops in Afghanistan, said there were direct links with jihadist and UK terror cells, reports The Times.

While ISIS has been pushed out of Iraq and Syria, the remnants have been regrouping in Afghanistan.

He said: “We’ve got to be acting as we are to ensure that we do not see future Manchester-style attacks."

Here they are known as IS-Khorasan or IS-K and are a rival to the Taliban and al Qaeda.

These extremist jihadists are being targeted by US and British special forces in Afghanistan.

Only last week its latest leader, Abu Saad Erhabi, was killed in a US airstrike and he was the forth commander-in-chief to be killed in the country in the past few years.

Sources have not confirmed whether any Britons are known to be among IS-K units.

But intelligence reports are said to reveal a “real threat” to Britain from Afghan-based militants were “consistently” being generated.

Last year Britain’s national coordinator for counterterrorism policing said almost half of the 850 UK jihadists who fought for ISIS had returned.

And Mr Williamson hinted that a small number of British foreign fighters may have made their way to Afghanistan to continue the fight.

And he said In recent months there had been “countless times when there have been links back to the UK from terrorists in Afghanistan”.