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In a speech to dignitaries and religious leaders on the eve of Ramadan, Tajikistan’s President Imamali Rahmon reported that over the past three years, 24 Tajikistani nationals had carried out terrorist attacks in 10 different countries. Referencing the fact that despite the country’s ban on 28 extremist and terrorist groups, individuals continued to pledge their alliance, the president stated, “Over the past 10 years, 6,680 crimes of extremist and terrorist nature, including 86 terrorist acts and assassination attempts, have been detected and registered in our country. Eleven terrorist acts and assassination attempts have been prevented." Voicing concern over the growing number of terrorist attacks committed by Tajik nationals abroad and the negative impact on the country’s reputation, the president stated, “Based on the information at hand, 24 of our nationals in ten different countries have carried out acts of terrorism in the last three years, including detonating explosives in large crowds. Suicide is not jihad, but a great sin that contradicts the teachings and requirements of Islam. Interest groups and special services in certain countries are responsible for creating these initiatives and are preying on the ignorance, inexperience, and lack of knowledge of some of our young people." According to Rahmon, 4,075 nationals are currently wanted for radical and terrorist crime. The Tajik prosecutor’s office and other law enforcement agencies were directed to step up efforts to integrate and repatriate the said individuals, including providing them with jobs and assisting with their adaptation.
The Kyrgyz Foreign Ministry has reported that 99 citizens of Kyrgyzstan – 28 of women and 71 children – have been brought home from Syria. The mission to return them from special camps in the north-east of the country was organized with the support of the U.S. government. The ministry said: "The Kyrgyz side expresses its special gratitude to the American side and international partners for their full assistance in the special operation and logistical support for the successful implementation of the fifth major campaign for the repatriation of citizens left in a difficult situation." This is the fifth mission to repatriate Kyrgyz citizens from the combat zone in Syria. The first stage of repatriation was carried out a year ago. In total, about 130 women and 300 children have returned home on special airplanes. According to authorities, all Kyrgyz arriving from Syria are being accommodated in a rehabilitation center to receive appropriate services to help them adapt to life in a peaceful environment. According to the latest public data from Kyrgyzstan's State Committee for National Security, more than 850 Kyrgyz have traveled to the combat zone in Syria -- 150 of whom have died in fighting. Active recruitment of Kyrgyz citizens began at the beginning of the war in Syria, mainly in the south of the country, where the influence of extremist Islamic movements was strong. Both men and women were recruited. After arriving in Syria, Kyrgyz women married jihadists and lived there, while Kyrgyz men joined militant groups. At the same time, some men returned from the ATS and recruited members for terrorist groups on the instructions of the Syrian jihadists. On many occasions Kyrgyz intelligence officers have found large quantities of banned extremist literature and propaganda materials in the possession of men who came home to recruit. Today the Kyrgyz special services are still searching for those Kyrgyz who fought in Syria and haven't returned home. Investigations focusing on those people are ongoing, and if it's proven that they took part in extremist activities abroad, criminal cases will be brought against them.
TEHRAN (TCA) — Security chiefs of Iran and Russia have warned about the relocation of remnants of the Daesh Takfiri terror group from their former Middle East strongholds to Afghanistan, Iran’s PressTV news agency reports. Ali Shamkhani, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, and Nikolai Patrushev, secretary of the Russian Federation’s Security Council, made the remarks at the second meeting of the Regional Security Dialogue conference in Tehran on December 18. The event was also attended by top security officials of China, India, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. “Since Daesh’s [Islamic State or IS] defeat in Iraq and Syria, one of the [pressing] security concerns has been the relocation of the defeated Daesh elements from the two countries to Afghanistan,” Shamkhani said. The purpose behind the relocation is providing the terror group with a base for planning, organizing and carrying out acts of terror against the Central Asian country and its neighbors, he added. He named terrorism and radicalism as the most serious challenges facing the region, saying the presence of extra-regional forces in the region are fueling such threats. Russia’s Patrushev said Afghanistan currently hosts between 2,500 and 4,000 Daesh terrorists. Patrushev said the only way out of Afghanistan’s current woes is direct and unconditional talks between the Taliban and the Kabul government. He also referred to the increase in drug production in Afghanistan as one of the principal sources of funding terrorism, and said around $600 million of the funds deriving from drug production and sales go to terrorist outfits in the region each year.
KABUL (TCA) — Afghanistan military officials say 113 members of the Islamic State (IS) extremist group surrendered to Afghan government forces on December 1 in the Achin district of Nangarhar Province, RFE/RL reported. Continue reading
KABUL (TCA) — Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani, during his visit to Nangarhar province on November 19, said the “elimination” of Daesh (Islamic State) in the province is a major achievement for Afghanistan, the region and the world. In recent years, Nangarhar has been named a key Daesh base in Afghanistan, Afghan broadcaster TOLOnews reported. Continue reading
KABUL (TCA) — A new report by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) warns that Islamic extremist groups like Daesh (Islamic State) are on the rise in Afghanistan, and that if former Taliban fighters aren’t helped with reintegration into society, they could soon flood the ranks of Daesh, Sputnik news agency reported. Continue reading
