officials have said they are bracing for both al-Qaida and the Islamic State group's Afghan affiliate, known as IS-Khorasan or ISIS-K, to take advantage of the situation. officials who spoke to VOA on the condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence declined to comment on any specific "chatter," but they did not minimize the potential threat. "Almost all of that was focused and oriented around ISIS (the Islamic State group), not around AQ (al-Qaida) or the Taliban," he added. "One of them told me 100% of the chatter they were intercepting from known jihadist networks in their immediate region, 100% was focused on, 'How do we get to Afghanistan?'" Lister said. "I've heard from a couple Southeast Asian government officials in the last 10 days or so," said Charles Lister, a senior fellow and director of the Syria and Countering Terror and Extremism programs at the Washington-based Middle East Institute. has been defeated, where the West has been defeated."Īnalysts, too, say talk of a new flow of terrorists to Afghanistan is picking up. "The inspiration is there, people saying this is where it's happened, this is where the U.S. "There is definitely a very strong sort of sense of enthusiasm out there for Afghanistan," he said. "There's no doubt that the chatter is about this," Edmund Fitton-Brown, coordinator of the United Nations team that monitors the Islamic State group, al-Qaida and the Taliban, told an online forum Friday. and NATO forces, terrorists in other parts of the world are talking about making the journey, counterterrorism officials and analysts say. Seemingly encouraged by the Taliban takeover following the departure of U.S. 11 terror attacks against the United States, there are indications a new generation of terrorists is looking to call the country home.
that there is no military solution to the conflict in Afghanistan, and only through a political settlement and a comprehensive ceasefire will we be able to support a resolution that brings a security, stability, and prosperity to the people of Afghanistan,” Price said in a statement.Īssociated Press writers Tameem Akhgar in Kabul, Afghanistan Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Turkey Matthew Lee in Washington, Munir Ahmed in Islamabad and David Rising in Berlin contributed to this story.Twenty years after the al-Qaida terror group based in Afghanistan launched the Sept. “When it comes to the talks in Istanbul, this gets to the point that, from the very earliest days of the Biden administration, we have recognized. would continue diplomatic efforts to reach a peace deal. State Department spokesman Ned Price would not confirm the postponement but said the U.S. In Kabul, Afghan government-allied negotiators had anticipated a delay as none had received an invitation to the conference and several were without visas to Turkey. Recent months have also seen an increase in government bombing raids on suspected Taliban positions and increased raids by Afghan special forces.īy Lolita C. Baldor, The Associated Press The attack was the first in weeks in the capital, even as targeted killings have escalated and Afghanistan’s security personnel have come under relentless attacks by Taliban insurgents.
The Interior Ministry said civilians and security personnel were among the wounded. Just hours before the announcement of the postponement, a suicide bomber attacked a convoy of Afghan security personnel, wounding seven people in the capital Kabul. Turkey’s foreign minister said the conference was delayed until after the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which ends in mid-May. No new date was given for the conference, which was to have started Saturday under the sponsorship of the United Nations, Turkey and Qatar. The decision to delay the conference came several days after Taliban insurgents, who are key to peace efforts, dismissed the U.S.-promoted conference in Istanbul as a political spectacle serving American interests.
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