(RFE/RL) — US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called on Taliban fighters to concur peace talks with the Afghan government, every bit he made an unannounced see to the Afghan capital.
Pompeo’s July ix trip — his start since becoming secretarial assistant of state– coincided with what officials promise volition live a concluding performance to clear Islamic State fighters as well as other insurgents inwards a remote district inwards the eastern Nangarhar Province. Around 14,000 US troops are currently stationed inwards Transitional Islamic State of Afghanistan every bit purpose of the NATO-led mission, spell too carrying out counterterrorism operations targeting Islamic State (IS) militants as well as Al-Qaeda. That was a clear sign of US commitment, Pompeo said at a tidings conference amongst Afghan President Ashraf Ghani.
“The strategy sends a clear message to the Taliban that they cannot expect us out,” he said.
He too repeated assurances that Washington was prepared to participate inwards straight talks with the Taliban, but repeated that the peace procedure would live Afghan-led. Support from other neighboring countries would too live needed, he said.
“An American role volition live of import inwards this, but nosotros can’t run the peace talks,” he said. “We can’t settle this from the outside.”
A spokesman for the US military machine inwards Afghanistan, Lieutenant Colonel Josh Thiel, said July eight said the latest operations conduct keep been centered on the surface area roughly Deh Bala, side past times side to the Achin district as well as almost where the US military machine dropped its largest nonnuclear bomb inwards 2017.
“This was 1 of the primary light-green zones that did ii things. One, it provided money, finance, logistics to ISIS as well as we’ve taken that away from them,” Thiel said, using an alternate refer for the IS group.
“Additionally, ISIS was using this every bit a site to compass as well as movement high-profile attacks on Kabul as well as Jalalabad,” he said, adding that recent activities conduct keep included concluding mine-clearance operations.
The Nangarhar provincial authorities said a US air bang was carried out belatedly on July eight inwards the Achin district almost the Islamic Republic of Pakistan border, killing at to the lowest degree iv militants linked to Islamic State. Those militants moved into Nangarhar iv years agone as well as conduct keep been blamed for brutality against civilians, including the job of executions past times beheading or explosion.
Insurgents had been using the surface area to heighten funds through illegal logging as well as talc mining, every bit good every bit exploiting local villagers.
The overall assault, which began at the halt of April, involved iii companies of Afghan commandoes supported past times US air strikes as well as US Special Forces.
Troops were ferried inwards past times helicopter, as well as an operations base of operations was laid upwards almost the hamlet of Gargari, almost where IS fighters were trying to found a stronghold.
Heavy fighting ended inwards early on June after 167 Islamic State militants were killed as well as large quantities of equipment captured, officials said.
The NATO-led Resolute Support performance has backed the authorities inwards Kabul inwards its grapple against IS, Taliban, Al-Qaeda, as well as other militants, mainly past times preparation as well as advising Afghan safety forces.
The Afghan Defense Ministry on July eight said its safety forces had doubled their offensive operations against insurgents since the halt of the government’s unilateral cease-fire directed toward the Taliban.
Ghani declared an halt to the truce, but he too called on the Taliban to resume peace negotiations. IS was non purpose of the cease-fire.
The cease-fire lasted eighteen days inwards all, after it was extended 1 time as well as coincided with a three-day Taliban truce.
Along with Nangarhar, Afghan forces say they are focusing their grapple against insurgents inwards Kunar, Farah, Helmand, Kunduz, Faryab, Uruzgan, as well as Ghazni provinces.
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