The US Central Intelligence Agency is increasing its covert operations in Afghanistan as groups of small, highly specialized teams pursue terrorist insurgents throughout the war-torn state, The New York Times reported Monday.
According to the Times, the CIA has shifted its focus from the fight against Al Qaeda terrorist group and assistance to the Afghan intelligence services to the fight against Taliban. This may reflect the agency’s role in a new US strategy on Afghanistan, which was recently presented by US President Donald Trump, the publication said.
“We can’t perform our mission if we’re not aggressive,” the CIA chief said at a security conference earlier this month at the University of Texas.
“This is unforgiving, relentless. You pick the word. Every minute, we have to be focused on crushing our enemies.
The CIA declined the newspaper’s requests for comment on the matter.
The special teams will focus on tracking insurgents who pose certain types of threats, like Taliban bomb-makers, those aiming to retake territory in the state and other missions hidden from the public eye, the officials told the newspaper. (APP)
