Taliban won’t work with US to contain Islamic State: spokesman

Islamic State has carried out relentless assaults on Afghanistan’s minority Shiite Muslims since emerging in the country’s east in 2014

It is also seen as the terror group that poses the greatest threat to the United States for its potential to stage attacks on American targets

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A flag of Islamic State, which is increasingly active in Afghanistan. Photo: Reuters

Published: 10:27am, 10 Oct 2021Updated: 8:27pm, 10 Oct 2021

The Taliban has ruled out cooperation with the United States to contain extremist groups in Afghanistan, staking out an uncompromising position on a key issue ahead of the first direct talks between the former foes since America withdrew from the country in August.

Senior Taliban officials and US representatives met this weekend in Doha, the capital of Qatar. Officials from both sides have said issues include reining in extremist groups and the evacuation of foreign citizens and Afghans from the country. The Taliban have signalled flexibility on evacuations.

However, Taliban political spokesman Suhail Shaheen told reporters on Saturday that there would be no cooperation with Washington on containing Islamic State, the terror outfit that is increasingly active in Afghanistan. Isis has taken responsibility for a number of recent attacks, including a suicide bombing on Friday that killed 46 minority Shiite Muslims and wounded dozens as they prayed in a mosque in the northern city of Kunduz.

“We are able to tackle Daesh independently,” Shaheen said, when asked whether the Taliban would work with the US to contain the Islamic State affiliate. He used an Arabic acronym for Isis.

Isis has carried out relentless assaults on the country’s Shiites since emerging in eastern Afghanistan in 2014. It is also seen as the terror group that poses the greatest threat to the US for its potential to stage attacks on American targets.

The weekend meetings in Doha are the first since US forces withdrew from Afghanistan in late August, ending a 20-year military presence as the Taliban overran the country. The US has made it clear the talks are not a preamble to recognition.

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