In the context of the intense attacks by the Taliban in Afghanistan’s Helmand province, a senior Afghan official has said that Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) fighters are involved in the fighting.
The crucial province has seen violent clashes between the Taliban and Afghan forces since last weekend, and the UN has said some 35,000 people have been displaced by the fighting. Taliban cadres launched offensives to capture cities such as the provincial capital of Lashkargah and several districts.
Helmand Governor Yasin Khan has said that foreign fighters associated with LeT, JeM and al-Qaeda are backing the Taliban in the attacks. Although the Taliban captured several checkpoints, Afghan forces have organized counterattacks to drive them out.
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The Taliban have provided safe havens for foreign fighters from the three terrorist organizations, and they, in turn, are providing military and bomb-making training to Taliban fighters, Khan said according to Tolo News channel.
“There is a presence of al-Qaeda, Jaish-e-Mohammad, Lashkar-e-Taiba and terrorists from Central Asia. They collaborated with the Taliban now and in the past, ”Khan said.
Tolo News quoted a Taliban spokesperson as rejecting the governor’s comments.
A former Indian intelligence official, who was involved in monitoring events in Afghanistan, said reports suggested that the Taliban fighters in Helmand were not under the control of the organization’s leaders who are involved in the ongoing talks in Doha with the Afghan government.
“Reports also suggest that the groups in Helmand are under the influence of Iran and that was the reason why the United States quickly launched counterattacks in Helmand. The province is crucial as it has traditionally been the route to take power in Kabul, ”he said, declining to be named.
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People familiar with the events also said that the Taliban groups in Helmand were being supported by Pakistan and Iran and were opposed to the ongoing talks in Doha.
Helmand is also one of the main poppy growing areas in Afghanistan and is crucial to the illegal drug trade, which generates significant funds for the Taliban.
A UN report released in May this year said that there are some 6,500 Pakistanis among the foreign terrorists operating in Afghanistan, and that the JeM and LeT play a key role in bringing foreign fighters to the war-torn country.
The groups have a presence in the eastern Afghanistan provinces of Kunar, Nangarhar and Nuristan, “where they operate under the umbrella of the Afghan Taliban,” according to the report by the UN Security Council’s analytical support and sanctions monitoring team.
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