Small Wars Journal

A Look at the Islamic State Affiliate’s Rise in Afghanistan

Mon, 08/19/2019 - 4:09pm

A Look at the Islamic State Affiliate’s Rise in Afghanistan – Associated Press

A suicide bombing at a wedding party in Kabul claimed by a local Islamic State affiliate has renewed fears about the growing threat posed by its thousands of fighters, as well as their ability to plot global attacks from a stronghold in the forbidding mountains of northeastern Afghanistan.

The attack came as the Taliban appear to be nearing a deal with the U.S. to end nearly 18 years of fighting. Now Washington hopes the Taliban can help rein in IS fighters, even as some worry that Taliban fighters, disenchanted by a peace deal, could join IS.

The U.S. envoy in negotiations with the Taliban, Zalmay Khalilzad, says the peace process must be accelerated to put Afghanistan in a “much stronger position to defeat” the Islamic State affiliate. On Monday, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani vowed to “eliminate” all IS safe havens.

Here's a look at IS in Afghanistan, a militant group some U.S. officials have said could pose a greater threat to America than the more established Taliban…

Read on.