‘Al-Qaeda not completely uprooted in Afghanistan’

KABUL: The Afghan government says that the roots of the al-Qaeda network are still alive in Afghanistan and the group still poses a threat to the country and the world and is collaborating with the Taliban.

But the Taliban has rejected any type of relations with al-Qaeda. The US presence in Afghanistan over the last 20 years was due to the existence of al-Qaeda. US President Joe Biden last month said the US has achieved its objectives in the Afghanistan war.

“Right now, al-Qaeda and Talib are not two different ideologic topics; they are beyond that as they have intermarried within their families,” NDS chief Ahmad Zia Saraj said last week. “Al-Qaeda was not owned by bin Laden,” said Atiqullah Amarkhil, a former military officer. “Al-Qaeda is still active in Afghanistan.”