US troops not authorized to target Taliban: NATO

Spokesman for NATO Resolute Support Mission in Afghanistan says that US troops are not allowed to suppress the armed Taliban group.

Wilson Shoffner, NATO’s spokesman emphasizes that however, US troops increased attacks against the Islamic State (IS) group in Afghanistan but they are not allowed to target Taliban group until they do not attack on them.

“We are seeing Daesh to establish a base in Nangarhar but Afghan security forces quietly have success against them. In the past few weeks, we the US troops have increased significantly our pressure on Daesh. The Afghan security forces have a sufficient leadership to deal with the militant groups. But one thing that remain is that we are not allowed to suppress Taliban unless they do not target us,” said Wilson Shoffner, NATO’s spokesman.

The US general considers the movements of Haqqani Network alarming and once again called on the regional countries, particularly Pakistan to unite against combating terrorism.

However, Afghanistan National Defense Ministry stresses on support of US troops and considered it a serious need for suppressing Taliban until the Afghan troops reach to self-sufficiency.

“The support of foreign forces is very essential for Afghan forces until they reach to self-sufficiency,” said Dawlat Waziri, spokesman of defense ministry.

Analysts are also said to believe that if foreign forces do not make efforts in eradication of Taliban and Daesh, achieving to peace and end of war would be nothing except a dream.

This year is the first fighting season in the past 15 years that the insurgents have kept the tenor of war continues to flare in Afghanistan.

This comes as the White House has always emphasized that the Taliban isn’t an enemy of the United States despite the years spent fighting the militant Islamic group that gave a home to Al Qaeda and its leader Usama bin Laden while he plotted the Sept. 11 terror attacks.

Today, fewer than 200 Al Qaeda terrorists reportedly remain in the country. But military officials say the primary attacks against U.S. forces in Afghanistan are being conducted by fighters loyal to the Taliban and the Taliban-tied Haqqani network, both of which are based out of neighboring Pakistan and freely cross the treacherous border.