Swarajya's video: Al-Qaeda Refocusing From Afghanistan To Kashmir: UN Report

A change in the name of the Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) magazine "suggests a refocusing" of the terror group from Afghanistan to Kashmir, a UN report has said. The 13th report of the Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team submitted pursuant to resolution 2611 (2021) concerning the Taliban and other associated individuals and entities constituting a threat to the peace stability and security of Afghanistan was released on Saturday. The report said that being subordinate to the Al-Qaeda core, the AQIS is maintaining a low profile in Afghanistan, where the majority of its fighters are located. AQIS is reported to have 180 to 400 fighters, with estimates by member states inclining toward the lower figure. "Fighters included nationals from Bangladesh, India, Myanmar and Pakistan and were located in Ghazni, Helmand, Kandahar, Nimruz, Paktika and Zabul Provinces. It also added that AQIS capabilities are assessed as "still weakened" from losses as a result of the October 2015 joint United States-Afghan raid in Kandahar's Shorabak district. AQIS has also been forced by financial constraints to adopt a less aggressive posture. "As with Al-Qaeda core, new circumstances in Afghanistan may allow the group to reorganise itself. The 2020 name change of the AQIS magazine from 'Nawa-i Afghan Jihad' to 'Nawa-e-Gazwah-e-Hind' suggests a refocusing of AQIS from Afghanistan to Kashmir. The magazine reminded its readers that al-Zawahiri had called for 'jihad' in Kashmir following the Da'esh Sri Lanka attacks of April 2019," the report said, nine months after the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in August last year. Subscribe to Swarajya on YouTube. Get a Swarajya subscription: https://subscriptions.swarajyamag.com/join-us Website: https://swarajyamag.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/SwarajyaMag Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/swarajyamag