STATEMENT OF
GENERAL JOHN F CAMPBELL, USA
COMMANDER
U.S. FORCES—AFGHANISTAN
BEFORE THE HOUSE ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE
ON
THE SITUATION IN AFGHANISTAN
4 MARCH 2015
Partial Transcript:
“The Taliban have recently shifted their tactics to High Profile Attacks against soft targets—especially in Kabul—in order to undermine popular perceptions of improved security and increased public confidence in the Afghan government. These strikes garner considerable media attention, while requiring minimal resources and entailing little risk. What is not captured in the media, however, is that these tactics reflect the bankruptcy of the enemy’s message and strategy. They continue to target innocent civilians and alienate the population with their indiscriminate attacks. These are not the tactics of an insurgent movement capable of overthrowing the Afghan government.
HAQQANI NETWORK
The HQN remains the most virulent strain of the insurgency. It presents one of the greatest risks to Coalition forces, and it continues to be a critical enabler of al Qaeda. HQN shares the Afghan Taliban goal of expelling Coalition forces, overthrowing the Afghan government, and re-establishing an extremist state. They lead the insurgency in several eastern Afghan provinces and have demonstrated the capability and intent to launch and support high profile and complex attacks against the Coalition. In response to several dangerous threat streams against Coalition and Afghan personnel—particularly in Kabul, ANDSF and U.S. special operations forces have stepped up security operations against HQN.
These operations have successfully disrupted several dangerous threats streams that sought to inflict significant casualties on the force.
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
We are also keeping our eye on the potential emergence of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in Afghanistan.
ISIL has become one of my Priority Intelligence Requirements. Thus far, we have seen some evidence of limited recruiting efforts, and a few Taliban have rebranded themselves as ISIL. This rebranding is most likely an attempt to attract media attention, solicit greater resources, and increase recruitment. The Taliban networks are well established, and significant ideological, sectarian, and cultural differences exist between the movements.
The Taliban have already declared that they will not allow ISIL in Afghanistan, but the potential emergence of ISIL has sharply focused the ANSF, National Directorate of Security (NDS), and political leadership. All are collaborating closely in order to prevent this threat from expanding.
Additionally, the budding presence of ISIL in the Afghanistan-Pakistan border areas also offers another opportunity for both countries to work together. For now, we assess that there is a potential threat that ISIL can establish a credible presence in Afghanistan. We remain cognizant of this latent danger and we will continue to monitor it.”
End Statement
Source: Congressional Record
See related video: ISIL blamed for Afghanistan attack https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAyCW9OfyLQ
See video: Suspected Afghan ISIL leader (a former Gitmo Detainee) killed by drone strike https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=carjQPK0Ic8