This report draws from Afghan press, civil society, citizen reporters, and Afghan government interviews and reporting.
Realities
The Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (IRoA) is still the legitimate and internationally recognized government. All 34 provinces of the country and major cities are under IRoA governance. The Taliban militia leadership and their terrorist network are still alive in Pakistan. The Taliban outpost for peace talks is still open in Doha Qatar. The Pakistani government has still not been sanctioned for terrorism support to the Taliban, and other known terrorist groups operating in the region.
The skirmishes for total security control of the approximately 400 districts are ongoing. Both IRoA and the Taliban militia give out various claims about which ones are under whose total control. There is no reliable source with a precise percentage. While the Taliban claims are often wildly exaggerated at near 90%, it is clear from reporting in the districts, where you find a heavy Taliban presence, the citizens are not being governed—but instead robbed, murdered, mutilated and raped.
recent activities in Afghanistan
These are just some recent highlights.
Armed Forces Spokesman General Ajmal Shinwari noted that in the past week, Afghan forces carried out 154 operations, including Afghan and U.S. airstrikes, across 25 provinces which killed 1528 Taliban, including key Taliban commanders. Another 801 Taliban were wounded and 17 others were arrested. He also hinted at a new six-month plan to re-secure lost territory and reinforce the city defenses. General Shinwari announced that Afghan forces have recaptured nine districts from the Taliban in the past week.
Known Taliban war crimes include forcibly evicting 400 families and shooting dead another 100 civilians in Kandahar’s Spin Boldak district. They also displaced people in Ghazni’s Malistan district and killed a number of civilians.
General McKenzie, the US CENTCOM commander overseeing support to the ANDSF visited Kabul. He “acknowledged there were tough days ahead for Afghanistan, but insisted that the Taliban are nowhere close to victory.” He also stated that “The Taliban are attempting to create a sense of inevitability about their campaign. [and] They’re wrong,” the “Taliban victory is not inevitable.”
The videotaped abduction and later murder by the Taliban of a well-known elderly comedian led to calls for more international intervention to combat the ongoing Taliban war crimes and human rights abuses. Human rights groups in Afghanistan are being criticized by Afghans for not reporting the Taliban atrocities often enough. Media organizations continue to struggle to get an accurate picture of the situation and face risk of death or detention to do so.
South
General Sadat told his soldiers that new strategic guidance from MOD was aimed at four war efforts. “This includes Defenses, mobilization, refitting and offense.” The new guidance in his words was “synched to support our war efforts and is a whole of government approach.”
Spin Boldak continues to see fighting and reinforcement by the Taliban from across the Pakistan border. There are reports of massive Taliban human rights violations and war crimes in Kandahar province.
Air Forces conducted strikes in support of 215th Corps and in just 24 hrs in Nad Ali district Helmand, 93 Taliban terrorists were killed and 57 wounded.
In Shahjoa district, Zabul Province the so-called Taliban Minister of Agriculture of TB was wounded, and 26 of his terrorists killed with 21 others wounded in an Airstrike on a Taliban. The Taliban leaders was taken to Pakistan for medical treatment.
North
In Jawzjan, 17 Taliban terrorists, were killed by Afghan Air Force strike killing two key commanders and injuring nine others. Another air strike in Faryab killed 19 Taliban in Pashtunkot district. The Minister of Defense General Bismillah Mohammadi visited Kaldar district of Balkh province to commend and reward ANDSF members for clearing the district of Taliban.
East
Abdul Haq Omari, the son of a Taliban delegate in the Qatar outpost was killed by ANDSF in Khost Province. Omari like his father was a member of Haqqani network. Afghan forces targeted the Seyyed Karam district of Paktia province killing 40 terrorists and injuring 12 others. Six Taliban terrorists were killed and eight wounded in Jani Khil district of Paktika province.
What The Future Holds
The Taliban have been quieter this week about their slowing summer campaign, as they have sent a delegation to China. The Chinese were quick to point out they asked the Taliban to break ties with terrorists and make real efforts towards peace. Both Pakistan and their ally China called for the Taliban to enter a ceasefire. The Taliban have been sustaining heavy losses to the ANDSF and have not reacted with their normal denials of Afghan security announcements of Taliban losses. They have tried to state that the ANDSF is using old footage of the massive casualties being inflicted on the Taliban. Although few can recall a time when such large numbers of Taliban have been killed in single operations. Most feel the Taliban are simply trying to rebuild their strength as they hope to hold the districts they entered and try to move on cities like Kandahar.
The UN Security Council sanction monitoring team report on ISIL & AQ activities in the past six months, found that “Al-Qaida operates in 15 Afghan provinces under the Taliban’s protection.” This proves the Taliban have not taken that major part of the Doha agreement with the US seriously. Secretary Blinken, who was echoed by UNSRSG Lyons and other diplomats in Kabul, said that if the Taliban try to take Afghanistan by force, they will become an international pariah. He and others stressed that now is the best time for the Taliban to find a path to peace and that further atrocities only weakens them diplomatically.
The Afghan government has put in place a 10PM to 4AM curfew to slow the movement of Taliban fighters at night. Afghan senior officials traveled around Afghanistan rewarding bravery and talking to the security forces and citizens. Minister Mohammadi announced that a larger operation to retake the districts the Taliban entered this summer was about to start. One wounded soldier told the MinDef, from his hospital bed, “I will return to the battlefield and I will not surrender our homeland to terrorists. I will fight until the end of my life.”
