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NATO Finds Militants Operating in 20 Afghan Provinces
 Helpful graphic at the linkA recent NATO assessment on the security situation in Afghanistan reveals that foreign and domestic militants are operating in at least 20 provinces across the nation. NATO's findings show that 15 Afghan provinces are presently under Taliban threat, while foreign terrorists, who apparently enjoy ties with Daesh, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), al-Qaeda militants and Harakat-e-Islami Uzbekistan militants, are trying to gain footholds in certain areas across the country, a move NATO believes could raise the scale of threats. This assessment comes ahead of the alliance's Warsaw Summit in July. NATO said the assessment was aimed at highlighting certain regions of the country which are under threat. According to the organization, southern Helmand province is still one of the Taliban's major strongholds while there is now a wider Taliban presence in central regions. Meanwhile, a number of Afghan political commentators and MPs have expressed deep concerns over the increased level of threats in the country, calling on government to target the militants resolutely. "Right now in Uruzgan province, the Taliban have more developed and modern weapons than the weapons available to Afghan National Army and National Police, the Taliban militants are even equipped with night vision equipment," an MP from Urozgan Obaidullah Barakzai said. Amid speculation over increased activities of foreign militants in Afghanistan, there are rumors that they are also trying to establish training camps and larger military bases across the country. A map which has been drawn up by NATO shows that the militants who are apparently associated with al-Qaeda are looking to establish military camps in Paktia, Paktika, Khost, Nuristan and Kunar provinces while Daesh is seeking footholds in the eastern provinces of Nangarhar and Kunar. Referring to the NATO assessment, meanwhile, some Afghan military experts and political commentators have said that good leadership of the war and continuing the military operations against these groups are key to curbing their activities. "If we forget the lessons we got from the battlefields during the past year, we will face defeat, therefore we need to move with a firm commitment and complete understanding of the situation to eliminate our enemies," said military expert Atiqullah Amarkhail. However, it is believed that Uzbekistan-based militant group Harakat-e-Islami Uzbekistan has tried to infiltrate some northern provinces such as Farah, Badghis and Zabul as its affiliates are already conducting terror activities in various regions. "We have noticed on several occasions that in Badakhshan province, Chechen, Uighur, Uzbek and Tajik militants are conducting terrorist activities. Therefore we call on the government to take firm action against these groups and launch clearance operations against them in Badakhshan," an MP from Badakhshan Safiullah Muslim said. Concerns have been heightened over a possible surge in security threats in Afghanistan in recent months, but the Ministry of Interior (MoI) says that the terrorists which operate in Afghanistan are funded from across the Durand Line. The assessment however shows that the Haqqani terror network and fighters apparently from Hizb-e-Islami are also posing threats in the eastern regions. This however, comes as the group holds direct talks with the Afghan government to seal a final agreement on peace. Video report at the link Posted by: badanov 2016-04-08 |
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