Daesh Afghan operations growing: US

WASHINGTON: The Daesh group is operating in Afghanistan but does not appear able to coordinate their operations in the country, a top US military official said.
The extremist group is now considered “operationally emergent,” said Brig. Gen. Wilson Shoffner, the spokesman for the US-led mission in Afghanistan.
“We do have reports of them operating in different part of the country but again not in a coordinated fashion,” Shoffner said, speaking from Kabul.
He added that the US has recognized “the potential for them to evolve to something more dangerous, and we take that very seriously.”
“We are seeing some fighting between Daesh and Taliban in Afghanistan. Usually this is the result of Daesh encroaching upon Taliban territory and interfering with established Taliban operations,” Shoffner said.
General John Campbell, head of the US forces in Afghanistan, will brief the White House on the Afghan security situation this fall, a critical turning point in determining the future of US and international military operations in the country.
Shoffner said the growing threat posed by Daesh in Afghanistan will “clearly” factor into the Campbell’s assessment.
For months, Daesh has been trying to establish itself in the eastern regions of the country and to recruit Taliban fighters.
The Taliban has repeatedly warned Daesh against expanding its operations in Afghanistan and a rivalry has emerged between the two groups.