Experts and political observers believe that the Al Qaeda terrorist group, contrary to what is said, has lost its former power due to the loss of its leaders, but it continues to work with the Taliban in Afghanistan, and contrary to the Doha agreement, the Taliban are using them and even ISIS to advance their goals.
Ambiguities about recent developments in Afghanistan have been heightened by the fact that the Americans have not leaked much detail behind the scenes of peace talks with the Taliban in recent months, and it is unclear what agreements have been reached between them and even the Afghan government details of the agreements have not been announced. On the other hand, the sudden departure of the Americans from Afghanistan, which this time the central government in Kabul had not been informed about before, added to these ambiguities, so that the Afghan government was not aware of the evacuation of Bagram base until the next morning.
Now, weeks after the recent crisis in Afghanistan, Americans are leaking information that the Taliban is collaborating financially with al-Qaeda and possibly ISIS.
According to some US media outlets, including the Afghanistan page of RFE / RL’s website on Tuesday, “The US Treasury Department has revealed in a letter to the Department of Defense the activities and financial resources of al-Qaeda and ISIS in Afghanistan.”
The letter, recently sent to the Pentagon by Gregory Sullivan, the US Treasury Secretary-General, was linked to al-Qaeda and ISIS activities in Afghanistan.
The letter, signed by Sullivan, states that al-Qaeda has become stronger in Afghanistan since 2020 and has continued to operate jointly with the Taliban and the group.
The letter confirms that al-Qaeda is still receiving aid from its supporters and those who believe their aid is being used for humanitarian and benevolent purposes.
The US Treasury Department also wrote that Al Qaeda continues to use its links to the Taliban.
At the same time, the US Treasury Department inspector general reported that senior members of the Haqqani network are also in talks to form a new unit of their militants with the help of al-Qaeda.
He believes al-Qaeda-linked groups in the Indian subcontinent and a number of other terrorist groups, including the Pakistani Taliban, are using the Durand Line between Afghanistan and Pakistan as a refuge.
According to the memo, the Taliban and Al Qaeda have been holding regular meetings since May 2020 and have strengthened ties.
The US Treasury Department has expressed concern about the rise of al-Qaeda in Afghanistan and said there was no sign of the Taliban losing contact with the network.
In this connection, “Rahmatullah Nabil”, the former head of the Afghan National Security Agency, says that the Taliban and al-Qaeda still have extensive ties and cooperation, and the Taliban have no doubt not cut ties with al-Qaeda and other important branches of the network, such as the Indian subcontinent.
Contrary to some people’s beliefs, al-Qaeda still has well-known figures who can lead it, but changes in the region and the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan are needed.
In this regard, the Afghan Republic News Agency wrote, quoting the head of the General Directorate of National Security, that the Taliban still has deep ties with terrorist groups, including ISIS and al-Qaeda.
Ahmad Zia Siraj had stressed that the Taliban had no desire for peace after signing a memorandum of understanding with the United States and was still seeking to use this opportunity to release its prisoners and win the war.
In February last year, the Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement, quoting a report by the UN Security Council’s Analysis and Monitoring Group on Al-Qaeda, ISIS and its affiliates, that the Taliban had links with al-Qaeda and Other terrorist groups continue.
According to the report, the Taliban’s ties to al-Qaeda, ISIS and some other terrorist groups are still in place, and the killing of several al-Qaeda commanders, including Hussam Abdul Rauf, nicknamed “Abu Mohsen al-Masri” in Taliban-held areas, indicates that the two groups have a close relationship with each other.
The report also cites threats and coordination between the Pakistani Taliban, regional terrorist groups and the Islamic Jihad group, which operates with 100 Taliban-backed militants in Faryab and Kunduz provinces.
The Taliban, meanwhile, has denied the allegations, including a report by the US Treasury Department.
The group’s spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, told RFE / RL for the umpteenth time in recent weeks that al-Qaeda was not present in Afghanistan.
Mujahid also said that the purpose of such reports was to undermine the Doha agreement, but that the Taliban adhered to the agreement; while he does not explain that in Doha, the occupation of provinces and cities was agreed upon?
But the Afghan Ministry of Defense says the Taliban continue their attacks in violation of the Doha agreement, maintaining ties with al-Qaaeda.
In its May 29 agreement with the United States, the Taliban pledged to sever ties with al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups and would not allow any terrorist group to use Afghan territory against the United States and its allies.
In addition to discussing the Taliban’s relationship with al-Qaeda, the Taliban’s relationship and interaction with ISIS, the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and the Haqqani Group; However, the Taliban is trying hard to distance itself from these allegations.
Political observers in the region believe that al-Qaaeda is active in Yemen and has sided with Saudi-led coalition forces in recent years in collusion with the aggressors in Yemen.
However, the complex relations of the terrorist groups in the region with each other, which of course are also linked to the Taliban in the recent crisis in Afghanistan, have added to the complexity of the situation in the country, which is probably due to the Americans. For 20 years, Afghanistan has been left in a “bone of contention” and completely irresponsible.
The Taliban, which in recent weeks has vehemently denied reports of links to terrorist groups such as ISIS and al-Qaaeda and denied crimes committed in the occupied territories, has continued to fail to persuade public opinion, and the Afghan people blame the Taliban for the unrest, killings and looting of towns and villages, as well as the forced migration of many Afghan citizens, even if the group itself has no role in the current events.