Editor in Chief: Moh. Reza Huwaida Thursday, March 28th, 2024

The Return of Takfiri Terrorist Group is Serious Threat to Afghanistan

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The Return of Takfiri Terrorist Group is  Serious Threat to Afghanistan

Unhappily, the news of appearing Takfiri terrorist group, especial IS-K branch on the northern frontiers of the country by Alexander Bortinkov, head of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation, and acknowledgment by Scott Miller, the commander of resolute support forces, have newly alarmed security threats in Afghanistan. Mr. Burtinkov said more than 5,000 IS forces that fled from Syria and Iraq have sheltered in the northern borders of Afghanistan and they will be a serious threat to the security of entire region. Scott Miller also said that al-Qaeda is still in some parts of Afghanistan fighting against the Afghan government in coordination with other terrorist groups. In the last days, there were many reports of full coordination between the Taliban and al-Qaeda and the unity of the two terrorist groups.
Unfortunately, the political climate in Afghanistan is so busy with internal issues that such news  are easily forgotten and never regain its importance, but we must accept that these news is a misfortune sign for return of another cycle of violence in the country. The above news shows that Afghanistan may once again go to throat of terrorist groups but this round would be worse than what were witnessed in the past. If this happens, and the terrorist groups such as IS-K, al-Qaeda and the Taliban will once again dominate larger parts of Afghanistan, and they will try to display their latest style of violence that have not shown in Syria and Iraq.
However, the presence of IS-K is not a new in Afghanistan; Initially, The Islamic State announced its expansion to the Khorasan region in 2015, which historically encompasses parts of modern day Iran, Central Asia, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. Despite initial skepticism about the group’s existence from analysts and government officials alike, IS-K has been responsible for nearly 100 attacks against civilians in Afghanistan and Pakistan, as well as roughly 250 clashes with the U.S., Afghan, and Pakistani security forces since January 2017. Though IS-K has yet to conduct attacks against the U.S. homeland, the group represents an enduring threat to U.S. and allied interests in South and Central Asia.
But the recent growth of terrorists groups have not only concerns Afghans but also concerned many of the northern neighboring countries; Earlier a conference for fighting against terrorist was held in Dushanbe, Tajikistan; Reportedly, Rajab Ali Rahman Ali, a Tajikistani Frontier Commander said that a large collection of terrorist forces moved to the northern part of Afghanistan border with Tajikistan. He said that more than 29 Taliban bases and terrorists training centers have also moved to the northern provinces of Afghanistan which distanced from 2 to 120 kilo miter from the central countries borders. He added, more than 6235 fighters are trained in these bases and centers while they also contribute to opium smugglers towards central countries.
Overall, it seems that the Middle East is waiting for new series of events, especially with the increasing tensions between Iran and United States. Any kind of anxiety and clashes in this area will rapidly spread to Afghanistan and will more complicate the situation in our country. Regional and global powers can directly or indirectly use terrorists as a weapon against one and other to strengthen their political and economic interests. But no other area in the region will be better playground than Afghanistan for regional and international actors and the nest of terrorism. Unfortunately, intentionally or unintentionally we have paved the ground for such destructive games. Means, if a piece of cotton easier get fire than a piece of log because it has the talent of ignition. Unfortunately, the same is the case of Afghanistan comparing to other countries due to many reasons.
Some of the regional countries may also contribute to instability in Afghanistan in order to influence the process of political affairs such as election in Afghanistan but no elements can better trouble the water rather than terrorist groups. Over the past several years, the aerial and logistic supports have been secretly provided to extremist groups in some part of Afghanistan but this time, they may send their supported troops under name of IS-K to the Afghan borders. Some of neighboring countries have overtly supported terrorist groups as their citizens and supported groups have been killed and arrested in Afghanistan but they tried to hide the moon with their two fingers. In fact, the real issue is not only returning terrorism because there are enough destructive forces and it might be the return of another cycle of violence and instability in Afghanistan.
The only way to confront the growing power of the terrorist groups is political consensus of all political groups and factions against the terrorist groups centering on protection of the political system and avoid playing personal games which is naturally against the interest of the country. Some of the political games which are ongoing among the internal players might be more destructive than terrorists’ attacks. As both terrorists and their supporters have disappointed from confrontation with Afghans that’s why they try to provoke ethnic or religious gaps in order to reach their goals. Therefore, all political factions including presidential candidates must be cautious and understand that any move against national unity will have destructive consequences.  Unfortunately, we have repeated failed to cross from the ethnic, religious, linguistic and personal criteria but these must be a lesson for future.

Mohammad Zahir Akbari is the permanent writer of the Daily Outlook Afghanistan. He can be reached at mohammadzahirakbari@gmail.com

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