As a tactic of coercion that uses or threatens to use violence in order to instill fear and achieve political or ideological objectives, terrorism may not have a widely agreed-upon definition. To keep the peace, terror poses a major threat to several United Nations member States and their citizens (Pillar, 2018). The United Nations’ 19 universal treaties, Security Council resolutions, and Worldwide Counter Terrorism Strategy provide a paradigm for counter-terrorism measures at the global, regional, and federal levels, with distinct difficulties and approaches. The purpose of this article is to examine the state of counterterrorism in Afghanistan and how it has been implemented around the world.
Current Event in Afghanistan
Even after failing to predict how quickly the Afghan National Security Forces could disintegrate, it appears that Western intelligence and defense organizations are already having secret contacts with Taliban officials. The CIA Director, William Burns, allegedly rushed to Kabul within hours after the Taliban’s capture of the capital and spoke with their administrative chief, Mullah Baradar, according to reports.
Anti-terrorist efforts in Afghanistan are an essential part of the strategy. Even if the Taliban were to have the ability, “I am not hopeful that the Taliban can do this, even if they could have the desire,” says former MI6 chief Sir Alex Younger. The Taliban’s near-complete takeover of Afghanistan implies that the West no longer has an Afghan special force to collaborate with.
One of Afghanistan’s most well-known security agencies, known as the National Directorate of Security (NDS), has uncovered the activities of al-Qaeda, ISIS-K, and other jihadist terrorist organisations. Special troops from Afghanistan, the United Kingdom, and the United States rushed in and closed down these bases, often by helicopter, before any worldwide assaults could be launched.
The allegation was made because there were no worldwide attacks conducted from Afghanistan while American forces were deployed there over the last two decades. However, the truth is that spies are increasingly turning their attention to Afghanistan (Gardner, 2021). It’s been tough to track down the human informants who gave us information about extremist behavior. Because he oversees both GCHQ, MI6 and, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab is well-versed in the challenges that lie ahead.
GCHQ and its American counterpart, the National Security Agency, have been vital in discovering ISIS terror networks in Iraq and Syria. When it comes to putting spies “upstream” in terrorist organizations in Afghanistan, MI6 will need an entirely new network of human contacts to be able to do so successfully. And it could take years to get there. US-Taliban relations are one of the strangest aspects of Afghanistan’s recent history, given that they’ve just spent the past two decades battling each other.
The Taliban and al-Qaeda consider ISIS-K to be an enemy, and it seems likely that ISIS-K will be the next insurgency to face Afghanistan’s new rulers. Al-Qaeda, on the other hand, presents a much more complicated picture (Gardner, 2021). Al-Qaeda and the Taliban have deep ethnic and marital ties, according to a June UN investigation. Amin ul-Haq, Osama Bin Laden’s former defense commander, returned to Afghanistan last week, a disturbing development. For counterterrorism officials throughout the world, it’s very concerning that a high-profile figure who the United States has designated as a “Specially Assigned Global Terrorist” feels comfortable enough to return now that the United States has departed. For the foreseeable future, they won’t be able to take their eyes off Afghanistan.
Terrorist organizations like Al-Qaida, ISIS, and Hizballah are still planning assaults on the U. S. and our allies around the world. With an ever-evolving list of dangers, the Department of State is always seeking worldwide consensus on the need to weaken and defeat these potential enemies. The U.S. State Department collaborates with other governments to improve the capacity to prevent, limit, monitor, and respond to threats of terrorism through diplomatic involvement and foreign aid. Enhancing police departments and judicial capabilities, increasing airport and border security, increasing global information sharing, thwarting terrorist financing, improving crisis response, as well as combating violent extremism are all part of this effort. By engaging in global diplomacy, the State Department encourages nations to enhance their own anti-terrorism capabilities and advocates larger burden sharing to combat terrorist threats (Zimmerman, 2019). Along with other federal agencies and the broader intelligence community, the State Department coordinates a comprehensive approach to global counterterrorism.
To prevent terrorist attacks, global support has grown after the 9/11 attacks, and there is evidence of a hardening of attitudes to “terrorist” prosecutions across the globe. In a world where terrorist groups like the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant and Al-Qaida(ISIL, or Da’esh) are increasingly exporting and globalizing terrorism, this is relevant (Ambrozik, 2019). Responding to this threat, governments employ a variety of counterterrorism measures, ranging from criminal justice systems – which should be the default reaction, including as an approach to prevent terrorist attacks – to “harder” safety measures backed by greater military investment.
Every day, thousands of police officers throughout the world are on the lookout for extremists and other criminals who could try to carry out their plans. It’s hard to overstate the importance of border guards, police, and prosecutors sifting through mountains of material in order to keep an eye out for any suspicious activity. Recognizing the immense value in providing them with the resources they need, they have made it their mission to do everything they can to make these resources available. It’s obvious that governments can’t handle this problem on their own. Countries with strong counter-terrorism plans understand the importance of engaging local communities, the corporate sector and other segments in society in the fight against terrorism and extremism. National and international authorities are encouraged to share intelligence and information. There’s a good chance it’ll be more effective if it gets a larger response.
There has been turmoil and death in Afghanistan as a result of the Taliban’s takeover of the country’s government. Citizens are now at the mercy of the Taliban’s rule due to the withdrawal of US military assistance. Diplomacy is being used as a tool in the fight against terrorism. By failing to act swiftly to defend Afghan lives and civil rights, the global community risks further damaging the reputation of the United States and its NATO allies, which has already been tarnished by the badly planned exit from Afghanistan. To ignore the pleas of the Afghan people, particularly women, for twenty years is not the right response. Yet another blow to the international society’s twenty-year-old combating terrorism and legal framework efforts, as well as a risk of inciting other terrorist groups around the world, would be to let political and economic considerations take precedence over the necessity to confront the elevated incidence of global terrorism under the Taliban. To protect our citizens from terrorist assaults, anti-terrorism should be implemented by all countries.
Ambrozik, C. (2019). Countering Violent Extremism Globally. Perspectives on Terrorism, 13(5), 102-111.
Gardner, F. (2021). Afghanistan: How can the West stop terror bases?. BBC News. Retrieved 20 January 2022, from https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-58395371.
Pillar, P. R. (2018). Counterterrorism. In Security Studies (pp. 408-421). Routledge.
Zimmerman, K. (2019). Beyond Counterterrorism.