Pentagon warns of worsening terrorist threat as Taliban seize Afghanistan

Source: Politico | August 16, 2021 | Lara Seligman

Top defense officials are already warning that terrorist networks inside Afghanistan could quickly regroup in the wake of Kabul’s collapse on Sunday.

The Pentagon is warning that terrorist networks based in Afghanistan could gain power faster than expected after the Taliban seized control in a stunning guerrilla campaign last week.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin made clear to lawmakers over the last 24 hours that he wants to “reassess” the potential for terrorist groups such as al Qaeda and the Islamic State to reconstitute inside Afghanistan in light of the Taliban’s takeover, spokesperson John Kirby told POLITICO Monday.

However, it is too early for the Defense Department “to make a firm judgment either way” about what the terrorist threat will look like in the coming weeks and months, Kirby told reporters earlier in the day.

But top defense officials are already warning that terrorist networks inside Afghanistan could quickly regroup in the wake of Kabul’s collapse on Sunday, according to two people familiar with the discussions.

Gen. Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told senators on a Sunday call that the Pentagon is expected to modify its earlier assessment about the pace of the terrorist threat in Afghanistan, according to a source familiar with the call. The Associated Press first reported the news Sunday.

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