The Counter Extremism Project (CEP) reports weekly on the methods used by extremists to exploit the Internet and social media platforms to recruit followers and incite violence. Last week, CEP researchers located a recently released ISIS propaganda...
Ongoing negotiations between the Taliban and the Afghan government with support from the international community offer the prospect for stability in Afghanistan for the first time in nearly two decades. The talks could result in a significant...
A recent surge in attacks by ISIS and al-Qaeda-affiliated militants in Afghanistan is demonstrating to western and Afghan forces that the terror groups remain a formidable threat to peace and security in the region. These mounting challenges were on...
A new report released by the United Nations (U.N.) last week revealed that the Taliban maintained routine consultations with al-Qaeda, despite the Taliban’s peace deal with the United States. According to the report, about 400 to 600 armed al-Qaeda...
Success Of U.S.-Taliban Peace Deal Appear Doubtful (New York, N.Y.) – Yesterday, the Afghan government announced the release of 100 Taliban prisoners in accordance with the phased releases required under an agreement signed on February 29 between the...
Last Friday, the Trump Administration and the Taliban reached an agreement to reduce violence in Afghanistan. However, one major obstacle the current peace process faces is the confirmation of Ashraf Ghani’s second term win as president of...
Last Saturday, two U.S. servicemembers were killed by a roadside bomb in southern Kandahar, illustrating that Taliban activity continues to be prevelant in the Middle East as peace talks in Afghanistan remain on hold with U.S. diplomats. It follows a...
CEP released updated resources on Afghanistan following recent Taliban and ISIS attacks that left at least 32 people dead and more than 180 wounded. According to the U.N., Afghanistan suffered a record number of casualties in 2015, with 3,500...
The UN further stated that the greatest danger comes from IS-KP, which has around 2,000 fighters and, in recent years, has carried out deadly attacks in Russia, Iran, and Pakistan, showing the group’s capability across borders. Hans-Jakob Schindler, a former coordinator of a UN committee monitoring armed groups, told AFP on Thursday, “The risk is very high that IS-KP will see these newly returned Afghan citizens as an opportunity for recruitment.” According to Schindler, “Since August 2021, the group has continued to recruit not only disgruntled Taliban members but also Afghans who feel excluded from the new government.”
Around 2.6 million Afghans have returned since January, including many who have spent decades abroad or who are setting foot in Afghanistan for the first time.
"The risk that Islamic State Khorasan sees these newly arrived Afghans as a potential recruitment pool is high," Hans-Jakob Schindler, a former coordinator of the UN committee monitoring militant groups, told AFP.
Get the latest news on extremism and counter-extremism delivered to your inbox.