Taliban support

THE latest UN monitoring report analysing the activities of several transnational terrorist groups is unequivocal in its assessment: the Afghan Taliban “have continued their support” to the banned TTP.

Though the report says that the regime in Kabul has taken some tepid steps to control its TTP comrades, this is clearly not enough, as the continuing reign of terror orchestrated by the TTP in Pakistan shows. Moreover, the document also confirms that Taliban-ruled Afghanistan remains a safe haven for a number of lethal terrorist groups, posing a grave security challenge to regional countries.

These outfits include IS-K, Al Qaeda — which includes AQIS, its Indian subcontinent arm — and ETIM. The report says that IS-K poses the biggest threat to both the Taliban regime and the broader region, despite suffering setbacks due to the kinetic action taken by Pakistan as well as Kabul.

Some parts of the report deserve particular attention. For example, it says that IS-K and the banned BLA may be collaborating. Moreover, the TTP has apparently expanded its operations to Balochistan, Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan. Al Qaeda has also solidified its support to the TTP, while AQIS, through the Ittehadul Mujahideen Pakistan, has stepped up its terrorist attacks in this country. Beyond Pakistan-centric groups, ETIM is active in the Wakhan corridor, which poses a direct threat to China. These findings indicate that the TTP is looking to broaden its geographical reach, while AQIS is also expanding its violent footprint.

The UN report says that the Kabul regime has taken some steps to try and control the TTP. These include relocating around 2,000 terrorists and their dependants away from the Pakistan border. Moreover, it says that Afghan Taliban supremo Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada has “warned the TTP leadership … to halt attacks targeting Pakistan” or risk losing the Taliban’s support. These warnings appear to have fallen on deaf ears, as the TTP has not scaled back its bloody campaign.

The fact is that ending the terrorist threat emanating from Afghanistan will take more than cosmetic steps and lukewarm warnings. If the Taliban regime wants to be taken seriously it needs to take across-the-board action against all terrorist groups on Afghan soil. They cannot pick and choose — for example, fighting IS-K but facilitating the TTP and AQIS. As we have argued earlier on these pages, a multilateral approach is required to address Afghanistan’s terrorism problem.

The groups active on Afghan soil pose a threat to the entire region, not just Pakistan. Therefore, all of Afghanistan’s neighbours must send the same message to the Taliban: end support for terrorist groups. If they cooperate they can be integrated into the region; if not, the Kabul regime must be shunned by regional states until it changes its ways.

Published in Dawn, August 14th, 2026



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