UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said in a report to the Security Council circulated on Monday that between mid-June and early September 183 incidents were attributed to Islamic State fighters — nearly double the 93 incidents during the same period in 2018. The Islamic State extremist group remains resilient in afghanistan despite “a high pace” of operations against it by government and international forces — and is urging all armed groups not to interfere in the upcoming presidential election, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has said.
Mr. Guterres cautioned, however, that a peace process could only be sustained if it is inclusive, protects the rights of all Afghans, and is “grounded in a broad consensus.” He reiterated his call for direct talks between the Taliban and the government, which the Taliban has rejected.
The secretary-general said Afghanistan’s “volatile security situation is highly concerning,” citing direct threats to the presidential election scheduled for September 28 “by anti-government elements that may discourage many Afghans from voting.”
