Daily Briefing : WHAT’S IN STORE FOR AFGHANISTAN AFTER THE US LEAVES? (June 29 2021)

As U.S. Withdraw Disaster Looms in Afghanistan

As US Withdraws, Afghan Interpreters Fear Being Left Behind

After US Afghanistan Withdrawal, Will Pakistan, Iran And Turkey Take Over?

Does Afghanistan Present a New Opportunity for the Quad?

For Further Reference:

Taliban Enter Key Cities in Afghanistan’s North After Swift Offensive:  Thomas Gibbons-Neff and Najim Rahim, NY Times, June 20, 2021 — The Taliban entered two provincial capitals in northern Afghanistan Sunday, local officials said, the culmination of an insurgent offensive that has overrun dozens of rural districts and forced the surrender and capture of hundreds of government forces and their military equipment in recent weeks.

Taliban Advances Test Afghan Forces’ Morale as the U.S. Leaves:  Yaroslav Trofimov, WSJ, June 20, 2021 — Every few hours this weekend, the Taliban released videos of triumphant insurgents inspecting yet another Afghan district headquarters that had been lost in battle by government forces or surrendered without a fight.

Mapping the Taliban’s Offensive:  Thomas Joscelyn and Bill Roggio, FDD’s Long War Journal, June 25, 2021 — Hosts Bill Roggio and Tom Joscelyn discuss the Taliban’s massive offensive in Afghanistan. The campaign demonstrates, once again, that the “peace process” is a Western delusion. They also discuss how Bill’s map of the Taliban’s gains has evolved over time. 

Civil War Looms Ahead of US Withdrawal from Afghanistan:  Situation Reports, GeoPolitical Monitor, May 18, 2021 — On May 8, teenage schoolgirls were bombed in a Hazara neighborhood of Kabul, resulting in over 80 deaths and 150 injuries. One week later, another bomb killed 12 worshippers and the imam at a mosque in Kabul, in defiance of a three-day ceasefire for the Eid al-Fitr holiday. These are just the high-profile attacks. All-too-often overlooked by global headlines is the growing number of assassinated public servants, civil society activists, and journalists, particularly women, that together portend a grim future for Afghanistan’s fragile political order.

Khamenei Paper Says Taliban Have Changed, “Not Beheading People’:  Iran International, June 28, 2021 – The Taliban’s onslaught in several Afghan provinces during the past several weeks has raised concerns on the part of some Iranian media and analysts about its implications about Iran’s security.