Editor in Chief: Moh. Reza Huwaida Friday, March 29th, 2024

US Needs to Keep Troops in Afghanistan: Dunford

US Needs to Keep Troops in Afghanistan: Dunford

WASHINGTON - The United States needs to keep its forces in Afghanistan until the insurgency is vanquished, says a top American military commander.
Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Joseph Dunford said: "I think we will need to maintain a counterterrorism presence as long as an insurgency continues in Afghanistan."
Gen. Dunford’s assessment came during a congressional hearing on Wednesday -- hours after the Taliban stormed the US-funded Counterpart International office in Kabul.
Four civilians were among the 10 people killed and dozens wounded in the suicide attack. Currently in talks with the US in Doha, the Taliban claimed credit for the assault.
In Washington, there are hopes the parleys will lead to a pullout of US troops in exchange for Taliban’s commitment to cutting ties to foreign terrorist outfits.
Twenty extremist groups were still active in the region and “a handful” of them had have warned of to attacking the United States, Dunford told lawmakers.
In response to a query from a senator, Dunford said: “I don’t think anybody would want to withdraw our forces from Afghanistan or the broader Middle East more than me.”
Sputnik quoted him as saying: “It’s my judgment today based on the threat from South Asia that we need to continue to put pressure on those terrorist groups or they’ll pose a threat to the US
“I know it’s frustrating to you and the American people for us to be there for such a long period of time,” he said, suggesting the situation was not yet ripe for a complete withdrawal, (Pajhwok)