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The Diplomat
05-08-2025
- Politics
- The Diplomat
Is the Taliban's Afghanistan a Safe Haven for Terrorist Organizations?
Although their capabilities have diminished, the latest U.N. report noted the continued presence of ISKP, al-Qaida, and affiliate groups like the TTP in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. This handout photo from Pakistan's ISPR shows guns and other military equipment purportedly seized from TTP fighters in Pishin District, Oct. 18, 2024. Pakistani authorities claim the TTP receives both supplies and safe haven from across the border in Afghanistan. On July 24, the United Nations Security Council's Monitoring Committee released its 36th report on the Islamic State (ISIS), also known as Daesh, as well as al-Qaida and associated groups. The report indicates that the threat from ISIS, al-Qaida, and their affiliates remains 'diverse and dynamic.' In Asia, the report focused only on two regions – South Asia and Southeast Asia – and it was clear the former was the larger concern. In particular, the report underscored 'growing concerns about the threat from foreign terrorist fighters' in South Asia – and especially in Afghanistan. 'The de facto authorities in Afghanistan continued to maintain a permissive environment for a range of terrorist groups, including Al-Qaida and its affiliates, posing a serious threat to the security of Central Asian and other countries,' the report stated. The Monitoring Committee said that al-Qaida's presence in Afghanistan – which mainly consists of fighters of Arab origin who had fought alongside the Taliban in the past – 'had been drastically downsized' and thus 'did not present an immediate threat for regional States.' According to the report, al-Qaida's presence was limited to just six provinces of Afghanistan: Ghazni, Helmand, Kandahar, Kunar, Uruzgan and Zabul. However, the report also noted al-Qaida's stated ambition 'to reactivate cells in Iraq, the Syrian Arab Republic, Libya and Europe.' The report also identified three new training sites, although 'likely to be small and rudimentary,' for fighters belonging to both al-Qaida and the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) – an anti-Pakistani terrorist group operating mainly from Afghan soil. Pakistan's government has repeatedly accused the Taliban regime in Afghanistan of providing safe haven to the TTP, which has stepped up its attacks on Pakistani targets. The Taliban have consistently denied such claims, but the U.N. report found that the TTP 'continued to receive substantial logistical and operational support from the de facto authorities' in Afghanistan (i.e. the Taliban government). Besides al-Qaida and its affiliates, ISIS, with its local affiliate Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP), also maintains its presence and is active in Afghanistan, which seems to be of major concern not only to the international community but also to the Taliban. The report identified ISKP as 'the most serious threat, both regionally and internationally' of any terrorist group in South Asia. The group is actively recruiting both within Afghanistan as well as abroad, 'including among Central Asian States and the Russian North Caucasus.' According to the report, in areas in Northern Afghanistan and close to the borders with Pakistan, ISKP 'has indoctrinated children in madrassas, establishing a suicide training course for minors aged approximately 14 years old.' The primary targets of ISKP in Afghanistan are the Taliban authorities, Shia communities, and foreigners. Its fighters, which the report estimated at around 2,000 in number, are mainly concentrated in Afghanistan's north and northeast, with the leadership mostly ethnic Pashruns and the 'rank and file… now mostly of Central Asian origin.' This transnational link indicates the level of threat the ISKP poses to the region and beyond. The U.N. report acknowledged that the capabilities of ISKP have diminished due to the Taliban's efforts to root out the group. However, despite this reduction in strength, ISKP continues to 'operate with relative impunity, exploiting discontent with Taliban governance,' the report alleged. The Taliban spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, rejected the report, labeling it as 'propagandistic.' He stated: 'Since the Islamic Emirate came to power, no rogue or illegal group has been allowed here, nor will they be in the future. Foreign groups are not permitted to operate in Afghanistan and are not present. Claims made by such institutions are made in a propagandistic manner – we reject them. They are untrue and far from reality.' Besides Mujahid, the Taliban's Chief of Army Staff Qari Fasihuddin Fitrat also claimed that the report's claims about the ISKP presence in Afghanistan are baseless. 'The noise regarding Daesh or foreign terrorists allegedly present in Afghanistan is nothing more than a propaganda campaign against the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan [the formal name of the Taliban's regime], intended to distort the reality on the ground,' he insisted. Regarding the ISKP, Fitrat said, 'This so-called Daesh project, allegedly originating from beyond our borders, is nothing but a tool of psychological and propaganda warfare.' However, neither Mujahid nor Fitrat commented on the presence of al-Qaida and its affiliates in Afghanistan. Unlike ISKP, which takes the Taliban as one of its main targets, al-Qaida has traditionally had close ties with the Taliban, making it difficult for the current regime to take action against the terrorist group. According to Ali Maisam Nazary, the top diplomat for Afghanistan's National Resistance Front (NRF), al-Qaida has set up nine new terrorist camps in Afghanistan in 2024. 'These are training centers; these are recruitment centers, and the Taliban have even allowed al-Qaida to build bases and munitions depots in the heart of the Panjshir Valley,' he alleged. '[That's] something unheard of, something impossible even in the 1990s for al-Qaida to have achieved.' Although their capabilities have diminished, the presence of ISKP, al-Qaida, and affiliate groups like the TTP in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan is undeniable. These terrorist organizations pose a serious threat not only to regional security but also to the security of Afghanistan itself. The sooner the Taliban, as the de facto rulers of Afghanistan, acknowledge this reality and take action against these terrorist groups, the better it will be for both the country's and the region's security.
India Today
02-05-2025
- India Today
Fact Check: Hindu family attacked for posting anti-Pak content? No, this was a road rage case
As tensions between India and Pakistan heighten with every passing day, in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack, a video of a brawl was virally shared with shocking claims. A post alleged, "A Hindu family in Pune was attacked by a group after posting against Pakistan on social media."Many shared the video on Facebook and wrote captions like: "In our own country, a Hindu family in Pune was brutally attacked just for speaking out against Pakistan. This is the harsh reality we face — silenced in our own home for voicing the truth."advertisement India Today Fact Check found that the clash had nothing to do with an anti-Pakistani post on social media. It was a road rage ProbeUpon reverse-searching the viral clip's keyframes, we came across a news report published in My Pune Pulse on April 29, featuring screengrabs from that video. The incident occurred in the busy Bhawani Peth area of Pune. Reportedly, a two-wheeler rider honked at a pedestrian crossing the road, who then confronted the rider. This soon escalated into a to a Lokmat Times report, on Sunday, April 27, Harsh Keshwani honked his horn while passing through the narrow lane. Shoaib Umar Saiyyad, who had parked his auto-rickshaw on the road and was unloading goods, was angered by this. He allegedly abused Harsh and physically attacked him. When his brother Karan, his sister Nikita, and their grandfather Bharat arrived and confronted Shoaib, he and his associates attacked the allegedly hit Harsh on the head with a stone and threatened to kill him. Harsh was reportedly rushed to the hospital for treatment. The others were injured as well. They claimed that Shoaib also threatened to burn their house down. A Pune Mirror report also said the to a Punekar News report, the police detained the accused, Shoaib, and registered an attempt-to-murder case against him and other unidentified accomplices, following an FIR lodged by Karan Lalit Keshwani at Khadak Police Today Fact Check reached out to Mahendra Kamble, the investigating officer in the case. He confirmed to us that no social media post led to this brawl — it was a road rage it is abundantly clear that a video of a brawl was shared with a false Reel Want to send us something for verification? Please share it on our at 73 7000 7000 You can also send us an email at factcheck@
Express Tribune
24-02-2025
- Politics
- Express Tribune
Tensions flare up again at Torkham
Torkham, a key border crossing between Pakistan and Afghanistan, remained closed on Sunday for the second consecutive day due to a dispute over the construction of a new post by the Afghan Taliban close to the border in violation of an agreement. The crossing, which links Khyber district of Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province with Afghanistan's Nangarhar province, was shut on Friday evening after the Taliban started constructing the new post. There was no official word from the Pakistani side about the closure, but one official confirmed the development. Speaking on condition of anonymity, the official said that as per the agreement between the two sides, any new structure along the border requires prior consent from both sides. In this case, the Afghan side started constructing the new structure without informing or consulting Pakistan. The Taliban government was asked to halt the work but after their refusal Pakistan had to shut the border. The border crossing was closed for both trucks and pedestrians. An average of 600 to 700 trucks pass through the crossing while 5,000 to 6,000 pedestrians cross between the two sides each day. The Torkham border has been closed previously on many occasions for different reasons. "The current situation is very risky," said another official, adding that the standoff continued on Sunday. The official, when asked, could not provide a timeline for the reopening of the border. He said there were contacts at the local level between the two sides but the issue was yet to be resolved. The closure of the Torkham border, a vital trade and transit route between Afghanistan and Pakistan, has severely disrupted commercial activities and passenger movement. Despite escalating tensions, Pakistani officials as a gesture of goodwill allowed the transfer of the coffins of six Afghan citizens into the neighboring country. The issue of unauthorized construction along the border has long been a point of contention between the two countries. Since 2016, Pakistani and Afghan border forces have repeatedly clashed over the construction of buildings near the frontier. Both sides have since taken a rigid stance on border management, often responding forcefully to any construction or renovation activities carried out without prior coordination. The latest spat has added to the already tense ties between the two countries over the alleged use of Afghan soil by anti-Pakistani terrorist groups. A recent UN report endorsed Pakistan's concerns that the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) was not only operating from Afghanistan but also enjoyed support from the incumbent Kabul regime. The report stated that the Afghan Taliban provided operational and financial support to the TTP. The terrorist group was allowed to establish new training centers in Kunar, Khost, and Paktika right under the Afghan Taliban's watch. Pakistan has made it clear that unless the issue of terrorist sanctuaries is addressed, relations between the two countries cannot improve. The Taliban government has always maintained that the TTP is Pakistan's internal problem, but independent assessments suggest otherwise. Earlier, in August 2024, the border crossing was also closed after clashes between the two countries' border security forces over the Afghan Taliban's construction of roads near the border.
