In a recent report, a leading Afghan daily warned of the growing operational cooperation between the Taliban and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) in northern Afghanistan, and between the Taliban and Al-Qaeda in eastern Afghanistan alongside the Pakistani tribal areas.
Noting that the 9/11 attacks on the U.S. resulted from a close collaboration of the Taliban and Al-Qaeda and the Taliban’s sheltering of Al-Qaeda in Afghanistan, the report observed: "Now, an increasing operational alliance between the Taliban and IMU in northern Afghanistan, and the Taliban and Al-Qaeda in eastern Afghanistan close to the [Pakistani] tribal areas has the potential to again provide a fertile ground for terror attacks on targets outside Afghanistan including the U.S., Europe and of course the vulnerable Central Asian countries."
The report, titled "The Rise of Taliban-IMU Nexus in Northern Afghanistan," noted: "The existence of training camps run by IMU in some of the northern provinces such as Kunduz has been known for some time. These training camps are used by IMU to train and prepare a new wave of militants in expectation of gaining a greater foothold in the northern regions." The report also warned that the growing strength of these militant organizations could threaten stability in Central Asia.
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