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NEW DELHI: As the India-made vaccines landed in Afghanistan on Sunday, Vice President of Afghanistan Amrullah Saleh tweeted: “thanks & gratitude to India for this timely assistance. Now

it is our mission to keep the vaccination safe from Quetta Shura's suicide bombers, IED planters, ambushers & ill wishers.” Saleh’s comments came a day after Afghan NSA Hamdullah

Mohib declared Taliban to be the main hurdle for peace as a fresh wave of killings struck the country, even as peace talks remained stalled. A new report by the UN Security Council’s

Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team this week stated that contrary to expectations or even promises by the Taliban, Al Qaeda and Taliban remain very close in Afghanistan. A

matter of interest for India is the information that a former mid-level commander of the Haqqani Network, Shahab al-Muhajir, aka Sanaullah was in June 2020 appointed chief of the Al-Sadiq

office of ISIL, which covers the “Khorasan” region, including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and the Central Asian States. However, the report observes that

following “setbacks” ISIL-K has suffered from “degraded combat capability, reduced support on the ground and insufficient funding.” It says that without “stable” support, the prospects of

ISIL-K reviving its former offensive activity and holding territory appear “remote”. But the Taliban and Al Qaeda remain joined at the hip, since Al Qaeda leaders are given “shelter and

protection” by the Taliban. The killing of several Al-Qaida commanders in Taliban-controlled territory underscores how close the two groups are. This is a significant challenge not only for

India and Afghanistan but the US as well. The new Biden administration is currently weighing the merits of a complete troop pullout from Afghanistan by May 1. But the recent spate of

violence, and the knowledge that the Taliban haven’t actually abided by their promises in the peace agreement will complicate the decision. In addition, several experts have pointed out that

Afghanistan could descend into civil war once the US leaves. In fact, the UNSC report says that the stronger Taliban is, the stronger Al Qaeda would be. “Al-Qaida assesses that its future

in Afghanistan depends upon its close ties to the Taliban, as well as the success of Taliban military operations in the country.” An Afghanistan Study Group, a bipartisan group of experts

has recommended that the US slow down its withdrawal while pushing for the realisation of the peace agreement in that country. In the midst of an Afghanistan policy review by the Biden

administration, the report said, "withdrawing US troops irresponsibly would likely lead to a new civil war in Afghanistan, inviting the reconstitution of anti-US terrorist groups that

could threaten our homeland and providing them with a narrative of victory against the world's most powerful country."