Afghan govt's control over territories reaches record low
The Afghan government has lost control over a record number of districts this year, although Taliban too have lost some areas, says an official US report sent to Congress this week. The report — that covers the period between July 1 and Sept 30, 2018, — identifies a dangerous trend which could have disastrous consequences for Afghanistan and its neighbours, particularly Pakistan: a gradual increase in ungoverned areas.
The Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), which prepares these quarterly reports for the US Congress, notes that Afghanistan’s thinly stretched security forces have been unable to retain their control over vast areas inside the country. The official Afghan forces have also sustained record casualties during this period, the report adds.
“Unclassified data shows the Afghan National Defence Security Forces (ANDSF) made minimal or no progress in pressuring the Taliban over the quarter,” says the report, quoting the data provided by the Pentagon.
The data shows that “the ANDSF failed to gain greater control or influence over districts, population and territory this quarter. While the districts, territory, and population under insurgent control or influence also decreased slightly, the districts, territory, and population contested … increased”.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1443711/afghan-govts-control-over-territories-reaches-record-low
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