Kabul control slips as Afghan forces make no progress against Taliban – US watchdog

The government’s control of Afghanistan has slipped in recent months as local security forces suffered record casualties while making minimal or no progress against the Taliban, a US government watchdog said on Thursday. Numbers provided by Resolute Support, the US-led NATO mission in Afghanistan, show the Taliban’s resilience 17 years after the US-led invasion. During the last quarter, the Afghan government controlled or influenced 226 of the country’s 407 districts – or 55.5 percent. According to the US Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), which compiled the data, the figure marks a slight drop (0.7 percent) over the previous quarter. It is the lowest level since SIGAR began tracking district control in November 2015. Of the remaining districts, SIGAR assessed that 49 were under insurgent control or influence (12 percent). The balance – 132 districts – are considered “contested” between the government and insurgent groups. In terms of the Afghan population, Kabul controls or influences 65.2 percent, the same amount as a year ago, AFP reported.