Taliban success in Afghanistan amid chaotic US departure seen as boost for extremists from Africa to South Asia

Radical Islamic groups from the Gaza Strip to Pakistan and West Africa see exit as a chance to reassert their presence

For them, the chaotic US departure underlines their message that Washington eventually abandons its allies, and that defeating powerful armies is possible, analysts say

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Members of the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the al-Qaeda affiliate in the northern Syrian city of Idlib, wave Taliban flags as they celebrate the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan on August 20. The takeover of Afghanistan is giving radical Islamic groups from Syria and the Gaza Strip to Pakistan and West Africa reason to celebrate. Photo: AP

Published: 6:49am, 28 Aug 2021Updated: 9:08am, 28 Aug 2021

A few days after the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, a convoy of militants drove through the city of Idlib in northwestern Syria in cars bearing the group’s white-and-black flags, honking horns and firing their guns in the air.

The celebrations by an al-Qaeda affiliate in a remote corner of war-torn Syria were an expression of the triumph felt by radical Islamic groups from the Gaza Strip to Pakistan and West Africa who see America’s violence-marred exit from Afghanistan as an opportunity to reassert their presence.

For such groups, the chaotic US departure following the collapse of security forces it had trained for two decades is a gift, underlining their message that Washington eventually abandons its allies, and that defeating powerful armies is possible with enough patience.

Members of the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, a Sunni Islamist militant group, wave the Taliban flags as they celebrate the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan. Photo: AP

“The success of the Taliban opens the way for radical groups to step up their recruitment operations globally. It is much easier for them now, and there is more receptivity,” said Hassan Abu Haniyeh, an expert on Islamic militants who is based in Amman, Jordan.

Despite the billions of dollars spent by the US and Nato over almost 20 years to build up Afghan security forces, the Taliban seized nearly all of Afghanistan in just over a week amid the US troop pull-out. The fundamentalist group swept into Kabul on August 15 after the government collapsed and embattled President Ashraf Ghani fled the country.