Acting Foreign Minister of the Taliban, Amir Khan Muttaqi, has denied the existence of terrorist groups in Afghanistan during a speech at the Center for Strategic Studies in Pakistan. However, his claim has been contradicted by numerous reports, including the United Nations Security Council report released three months ago, which identifies at least ten active terrorist groups in Afghanistan.

These groups including the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant Khorasan (ISIL-K), Al-Qaeda, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, East Turkestan Islamic Movement, Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, Islamic Jihad Group, Khatiba Imam al-Bukhari, Khatiba al-Tawhid wal-Jihad, Ansar Allah group, and others.

Muttaqi had previously denied the presence of ISIS in Afghanistan, but the Taliban’s own statistics show the extent of ISIS activities in the country.

Several Taliban officials, including Muttaqi, are currently on the United Nations sanctions list. 

Last month, leaked documents revealed that Afghanistan has once again become a hub for terrorism, according to the Washington Post.

Last year, the US President announced that the leader of Al-Qaeda network, Ayman al-Zawahiri, had been killed in a drone strike in Kabul. This news came after the Taliban had pledged in the Doha agreement with the United States that they would not cooperate with terrorist groups, especially those that threaten the United States. However, the Taliban have yet to confirm the killing of al-Zawahiri in Kabul.