AdvertisementIn the years since the US and its NATO allies left Afghanistan, a particularly violent branch of the Islamic State terror group has grown stronger. During the first few years of its existence, ISIS-K attacks were mainly confined to Afghanistan and Pakistan. The first year under the Taliban's rule saw a sharp uptick in terror attacks inside Afghanistan. But that trend has changed in recent months; attacks inside the country declined while attacks beyond its borders have increased. Thus, the conditions inside Afghanistan have awarded the terror group space to develop a greater capacity to stage external attacks.

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