U.S. military officials have claimed to be making steady progress in that fight. Underscoring the confused battlefield situation, it was the Taliban that Islamic State forces fought and drove out of the area. U.S. military officials have expressed growing concern about the war and urged that several thousand more U.S. troops be sent to shore up Afghan forces. Fewer than half of the country’s 407 districts are under full government control, and Taliban forces have come close to occupying several provincial capitals. “It is hard to find the enemy within yourself,” he said, adding that the Afghan military leadership is weak and politicized.

Source: Washington Post June 18, 2017 18:13 UTC