...the Pashtun equivalent of men...continues. The murderous Moslem group now claims to have taken control of a large majority of the country as government forces struggle to hold their ground. These struggles are evident as earlier this week 46 soldiers of the Afghan National Army (ANA) and Border Police were granted refuge and safe passage by the Pakistain Army. Reports revealed that a local ANA commander opposite Arundu, Chitral, sought help for the 46 soldiers as they were unable to hold their military posts along the Pak-Afghan border.
Meanwhile,
...back at the abandoned silver mine, a triangular dorsal fin appeared in the water. Then another...
talks between the Afghan Taliban and the Ghani administration barely seemed to have progressed. While the Afghan government officials met with the Taliban in Doha on July 17, the meeting concluded without any substantial headway being made as promises were made of more talks in the future. This lack of momentum in talks is extremely concerning because the worsening situation is now posing serious threats to Afghanistan’s neighbours.
The 28th report of the UN Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team has stated that the TTP has about 6,000 trained fighters on the Afghan side of the border. The more alarming finding of the report is the fact that despite growing distrust between the TTP and the Afghan Taliban, relations between the two groups still exist for operational purposes.
Apparently, a reunification took place in Afghanistan between the TTP and certain splinter groups in the period from December 2019 to August 2020. This moderation was reportedly facilitated by Al Qaeda which now maintains a presence in at least 15 Afghan provinces according to the UN report. The growing footprint of these groups and their alleged collaboration with the Afghan Taliban needs to be addressed by both regional and international stakeholders.
The threats are particularly pronounced for Pakistain, especially considering Noor Wali Mehsud’s (TTP leader) statement that their core objective is to fight the Pak security forces and gain control over the tribal regions. Pakistain should not be left to deal with this chaotic fallout on its own, and it is perhaps time to consider the formation of a regional security cooperative to counter this mutual threat.