Resolute Support obscures status of 7 Ghazni districts as 3 more fall to Taliban

Foreign fighters involved in assault on Ghazni, Afghan defense minister says

Video from Ghazni City shows Taliban on streets as buildings ablaze

State designates Iran-based Bahraini militant as terrorist

Resolute Support obscures status of 7 Ghazni districts as 3 more fall to Taliban
Foreign fighters involved in assault on Ghazni, Afghan defense minister says
Video from Ghazni City shows Taliban on streets as buildings ablaze
State designates Iran-based Bahraini militant as terrorist

UN: Iran-based leaders ‘have grown more prominent’ in al Qaeda’s global network

By |

A report by the United Nations includes new details concerning the dispute between Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and al Qaeda's senior leaders, including the role played by two veteran operatives living in Iran. The UN's member states say that HTS is still in "contact" with al Qaeda's leadership despite their heated disagreements, and that al Qaeda has even reinforced HTS with "military and explosives experts" sent from Afghanistan. Read more →

Analysis: 2 wanted al Qaeda leaders operate in Iran

By |

On Aug. 8, the State Department announced that it had increased its reward for information concerning the whereabouts of two veteran al Qaeda leaders: Abdullah Ahmed Abdullah and Saif al-Adel. Although State didn't explain the move, there is evidence that the two al Qaeda managers were operating inside Iran as of 2017. Read more →

Resolute Support obscures status of 7 Ghazni districts as 3 more fall to Taliban

By |

In addition to Ajristan and Khwaja Umar, the districts of Nawur, Jaghatu, and Deh Yak have fallen to the Taliban. Meanwhile, Resolute Support has intentionally misled the the public about the status of seven of Ghazni's districts. Resolute Support claimed these districts were under government control; in reality the Taliban physically controlled the terrain while the Afghan government operated the government remotely from Ghazni City. Read more →

Foreign fighters involved in assault on Ghazni, Afghan defense minister says

By |

Al Qaeda has long operated in Ghazni province, the site of a large-scale Taliban offensive in recent days. In 2010, Osama bin Laden ordered his men to relocate from northern Pakistan into Ghazni and other Afghan provinces. Bin Laden's lieutenant also wrote in mid-2010 that al Qaeda had "very strong military activity" in at least eight Afghan provinces, including Ghazni. More recently, American and Afghan forces have targeted al Qaeda operatives in the province. Read more →

Taliban seizes second district in Ghazni as provincial capital remains contested

By |

The current fighting in and around Ghazni City indicates that the Taliban has a detailed plan to tie up Afghan forces while attempting to seize the provincial capital. Additionally, the Taliban was able to mass its forces undetected; the Afghan military was clearly caught off guard and is struggling to get into the fight four days after the Taliban launched its attack. Read more →

Ghazni City remains under assault, despite RS assurances

By |

Resolute Support initially described the attack on Ghazni City as a "failed attempt" that would be used by the press to generate sensational headlines. Two days later, Afghan forces are still battling entrenched Taliban fighters inside the city, and the vital Kabul-Kandahar remains severed. Battles such as the one in Ghazni, reveal a disturbing pattern of misinformation and deception by Resolute Support when it comes to assessing and reporting on the Taliban's attacks on major cities as well as its assaults on district centers. Read more →

Read More >
Read More >