TEHRAN – While the US-led attacks have failed to curb the activities ofterrorist groups in Afghanistan, new reports suggest that the Taliban haveincreased their presence in rural areas near capital Kabul, to the extentthat even the security forces do not dare to patrol those areas.link>link>link>[image: Taliban Expanding Presence near Kabul]link>

Amid growing criticism about the Afghan government’s handling of securityproblems, the rising number of foreign forces, and the failure ofAmerican-led aerial strikes to counter the anti-government groups, localsources say the Taliban have managed to control large areas in Qarabaghdistrict, only 30 kilometers north of the capital.

Ariana News quoted local residents and security forces as saying that theTaliban have even set up desert courts in the villages of Qarabagh.

Witnesses complain that the government forces cannot patrol most parts ofthe district even during the daytime.

Confirming the presence and activities of the Taliban in Qarabagh, districtgovernor Mohammad Azim has said, “Small groups of two to three-member (fromTaliban) are active and mostly being involved in mine planting activitiesin the district.”

The situation in Afghanistan has deteriorated noticeably in recent months.The Taliban, which had previously seized considerable territory in ruralareas of the country, has launched offensives against large cities.Additionally, the influence of the Daesh (ISIL or ISIS) terrorist group hasincreased in the country.

Afghanistan is in a state of political and social turmoil, with governmentsecurity forces fighting the Taliban. The instability has persisted in thecountry since the US launched a military operation in 2001 to defeat theTaliban and al-Qaeda after the 9/11 attacks.