American intelligence has warned that the terrorist group Al-Qaeda (an organization banned in the Russian Federation) may continue its criminal activities abroad in "a year or two", and the Islamic State (IS, an organization banned in the Russian Federation) in Afghanistan may take one year to do so. This was announced on Tuesday, October 26, by US Deputy Secretary of Defense for Political Affairs Colin Kohl, speaking in the US Senate.
As the deputy head of the Pentagon clarified, both groups are going to continue "external operations". According to him, one of the terrorists' targets is the United States, but now Al-Qaeda and ISIS have no opportunity to realize their intentions.
IS militants in Afghanistan have previously announced their intention to continue their activities in the country and have committed a number of terrorist attacks. So, on October 8, an explosion occurred in the Seyid-Abad Shiite mosque in Kunduz. At that time, a Friday prayer was held in the mosque, which gathered hundreds of believers. As a result, 150 people were killed and about 200 were injured. On the same day, the Islamic State — Vilayat Khorasan group, which is part of the Islamic State, claimed responsibility for the explosion. The explosive device was detonated by a suicide bomber.
Prior to that, on October 4, it was reported that members of the Taliban movement (the organization is recognized as terrorist and banned in the Russian Federation) eliminated a group of five IS militants near the Russian embassy in Kabul.
On October 3, a powerful explosion occurred near the Idgah mosque in the capital of Afghanistan, where a farewell ceremony was held with the mother of Zabihullah Mujahid. It was clarified that there was a shootout in the area of one of the largest religious buildings in Kabul, presumably between the Taliban and IS militants. Wounded and dead were reported. The Taliban told about the destruction of a group of IS militants.
On August 26, several explosions were heard in Kabul. The first explosion in the capital of Afghanistan thundered at the entrance to the airport, the second - near the Baron hotel, in the immediate vicinity of the air harbor. The media reported on the involvement of a suicide bomber from the IG in the first explosion. The second explosion occurred as a result of the detonation of a car bomb. After that, a third explosion occurred in Kabul.
The situation in Afghanistan escalated in May 2021 after the start of the withdrawal of American troops who had been in the country since 2001. Members of the movement launched an offensive against major cities of the country and entered Kabul on August 15, announcing the end of the war. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani left the country on the same day. The United States finally withdrew its troops from Afghanistan on August 30.
In September, Russian President Vladimir Putin pointed out that the US withdrawal from Afghanistan led to a new crisis in the country and turned into a humanitarian catastrophe. Putin stressed that the forcible imposition of democratic values on any people is unacceptable.
