NATO withholds key information on Taliban attacks, says US watchdog
A file photo of unidentified gunmen.
A US government watchdog said on Friday that NATO's mission in Afghanistan is withholding crucial information related to Taliban attacks.
The office of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), in its quarterly report, said the Resolute Support (RS) had stopped providing figures.
It said that RS issued a short statement, saying the Taliban had stepped up attacks in March, after the signing of the US-Taliban deal which intended to end American troops' presence in Afghanistan and work towards establishing peace and stability in the region.
"Between March 1 and 31, the Taliban refrained from attacks against coalition forces; however they increased attacks against (Afghan forces) to levels above seasonal norms," RS said, as per the report.
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The RS mission previously shared data on "enemy-initiated attacks", which helped in evaluating the strength of the Taliban and other insurgent groups.
RS told SIGAR that it decided to restrict information because enemy attacks were now a "critical part" of discussions "regarding ongoing political negotiations between the US and the Taliban"
However, SIGAR told Pentagon that the data might be released in the future.
Pentagon supported the decision to withhold data, citing ongoing talks.
"So the decision was that we're working toward a better solution and a better place for Afghanistan and that the sharing of that information would not... move the ball forward," the spokesman, Jonathan Hoffman, said.
"The level of violence by the Taliban is unacceptably high," he said, hinting that a diplomatic solution will possibly not end the crisis.
In the week ahead of February 29, when deal was signed in Doha, violence dropped in Afghanistan, however, after the signing, the Taliban immediately resumed assaults on Afghan forces.
During the deal negotiations, the Taliban committed to stop targetting foreign troops, but no such provision was made for Afghan forces.
(With inputs from AFP)