The Taliban had committed in the Doha Agreement to severing ties with other terrorist groups, including the Al-Qaeda network. However, they hosted the former leader of this network in the heart of Kabul, who was later killed in a US airstrike. Recently, The UN Security Council and the US Special Inspector General for Reconstruction of Afghanistan (SIGAR) once again unveiled the close relationship between Al-Qaeda and the Taliban. According to their findings, besides maintaining their relationship with Al-Qaeda, the Taliban have allowed this network to establish military bases and recruit soldiers. According to the UN Security Council report, Al-Qaeda has recently set up eight new training camps in Afghanistan, and intermediaries individuals between Saif al-Adel, the leader of Al-Qaeda based in Iran, and Abdulrahman Al-Ghamdi, a key figure of this network in Afghanistan, are shuttling back and forth. But SIGAR has suggested that the leader of Al-Qaeda is in Afghanistan and issues statements of attacks on the embassies of the United States, Europe, and Israel from here. The Security Council report also mentions the Taliban’s relationship with the East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM) and Jamaat Ansarullah of Tajikistan and their displacement in Baghlan Province.
The United Nations Security Council has stated in its latest report that the Al-Qaeda network has established eight new training camps in the provinces of Ghazni, Laghman, Parwan, Oruzgan, and a weapons depot in Panjshir province. According to the UN Security Council report, Al-Qaeda’s religious schools are also active in the provinces of Laghman, Kunar, Nangarhar, Nuristan, and Parwan.
The UN Security Council emphasized that the relationship between the Taliban and Al-Qaeda remains close, and this network maintains its presence in Afghanistan under Taliban control. According to the Security Council, assessments by regional countries indicate that the senior figures of this network have not changed, and Al-Qaeda is still considered a potential threat to the region and beyond.
The report states that the Taliban are attempting to conceal their relationship with Al-Qaeda. The Council added that Al-Qaeda’s operational commanders share ideological and operational methods with the Taliban and have personal ties in the history of terrorist activities. The report specifies that ten senior figures of the Al-Qaeda network are present in Afghanistan.
According to the Security Council, reports indicate that the Taliban’s efforts to limit some of Al-Qaeda’s activities have led to tension between the Taliban and Al-Qaeda. The Council stated that old faces of Al-Qaeda in Afghanistan are likely unable to provide strategic perspectives. The report highlights that currently, Al-Qaeda in Afghanistan cannot design sophisticated attacks.
The United Nations Security Council states that intermediaries between Saif al-Adel, the leader of Al-Qaeda, and Abdulrahman Al-Ghamdi, a key figure of this network in Afghanistan, are shuttling back and forth. The report specifies that Al-Qaeda “has safe houses to facilitate the movement of its members between Afghanistan and the Islamic Republic of Iran in the provinces of Herat, Farah, Helmand, and additional safe houses in Kabul.”
The Security Council report indicates that the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has become stronger and bold in its attacks, conducting more autonomous attacks against Pakistan. Findings suggest that Afghan Taliban generally align with the objectives of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan. The report states: “In addition to providing arms and equipment, the Taliban and Al-Qaeda have assisted Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan forces in cross-border attacks.” The Security Council noted: “Although the Taliban instructed TTP fighters not to participate in operations outside Afghanistan, many of them did. Some Afghan Taliban members have also joined Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, considering it their religious duty.”
The Security Council report emphasizes that TTP members and their families receive “regular aid packages” from the Taliban. According to the report, Hakim al-Misri, in charge of training camps and suicide bombers for Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, is in Kunar Province.
The Security Council stated that to divert pressure from Pakistan, the Taliban temporarily detained 70 to 200 Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan members and then relocated them to northern Afghanistan.
Taliban’s Relationship with the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU)
The United Nations Security Council report indicates that the Taliban have maintained their relationship with the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU). The Security Council added that the Taliban had relocated operational cores of the East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM/TIP) members from Badakhshan Province to the province of Baghlan. According to the Security Council, the East Turkestan Islamic Movement focuses on youth education in reserve forces and increasing female recruitment in the northeast. The report warns that regional countries have expressed concerns over the Taliban’s ongoing collaboration with other terrorist groups, especially the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, in recruitment, training, attack planning, and regional threats.
Previously, findings of the Hasht-e Subh Daily investigative report stated that hundreds of the East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM/TIP) fighters are present in Baghlan and Badakhshan provinces, and some of their commanders have received Afghan citizenship and married there.
Additionally, Rahmatullah Nabil, former head of Afghanistan’s National Directorate of Security (NDS), stated that the group comprises 700 to 800 fighters who have moved to northern and northeastern regions of the country, with 100 to 150 fighters also present in Badghis and Ghor provinces.
On the other hand, the Security Council report mentions changes in terrorist tactics among terrorist groups. According to the report’s findings, terrorist group gatherings on Afghan soil weaken the regional security situation. The Security Council identifies the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) as the biggest threat within Afghanistan, capable of terrorist attacks within and beyond the region.
SIGAR Report Suggests Al-Qaeda Leader Might Be in Afghanistan
The Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) stated in its quarterly report to the U.S. Congress that ISIS attacks on Hazaras and Shiites in Afghanistan have escalated. SIGAR documented four ISIS attacks on Hazaras and Shiites in Afghanistan from October 2023 to January 2024.
The SIGAR report indicates that Al-Qaeda threats are reemerging in Afghanistan. It’s noted that in the past three months, the Al-Qaeda chief commander, believed to be based in Afghanistan, has issued three press statements, calling for attacks on embassies and buildings of the United States, Europe, and Israel. According to SIGAR, it remains unclear whether the Taliban have the capability and determination to prevent Al-Qaeda terrorist attacks outside Afghanistan.
SIGAR mentioned in its report that the United States has provided USD 11.21 billion in aid to Afghanistan under Taliban rule and has been one of the largest donors in the past two and a half years. Earlier, the United Nations Security Council reported that some Al-Qaeda commanders are present in the Taliban regime’s decision-making and advisory levels.
Meanwhile, Zabihullah Mujahid, Taliban spokesperson, rejected the United Nations Security Council’s report. He claimed that “there is no Al-Qaeda presence in Afghanistan” and that the group does not allow anyone to use Afghan soil against other countries.
Reaction of the Taliban Oppositions to the UN Security Council Report
Following the publication of the United Nations Security Council report, some political figures and anti-Taliban military factions have welcomed the findings of the Sanctions Committee of the Security Council Resolution 1267.
The Afghanistan Freedom Front (AFF), which has organized guerrilla attacks against the Taliban in several provinces over the past two years emphasized in a statement that Afghanistan under Taliban rule has become a haven for international terrorism. The Front’s statement reads: “The recent report of the UN Security Council’s Resolution 1267 sanctions committee, released on January 29, 2024, is a validation of the legitimate positions of the Afghanistan Freedom Front, indicating that the Taliban group is the nexus of the malignant ring of terrorism and the breeding ground for this heinous phenomenon in the region and beyond. The Taliban not only have a close and organic relationship with terrorism, it is the cradle nurturing of this group.”
It is worth mentioning that some political movements and activists also consider this report as evidence of the Taliban’s ties with other terrorist groups. They emphasize that the Taliban have turned Afghanistan into a haven for terrorism.