A top American commander has said that the US and Afghan forces are focusing more on going after the dreaded Haqqani network, which has threatened to disrupt the presidential elections next month in the war-torn country.
“Haqqani is the most virulent strain of the insurgency. It’s the greatest risk of the force and, frankly, from a high-profile attack perspective, perhaps the greatest risk to the campaign,” General Joseph Dunford, Commander of the US and NATO forces in Afghanistan, told reporters. “The Haqqani network has been more active in some ways over the last few months. So, we have energised our efforts accordingly. I don’t think there’s anything that we’re doing today that’s different than what we were doing before, but it may be more focused,” he said in response to a question.
Dunford gave credit to the Afghan forces from protecting the country from the Haqqani network, which has time and again threated to disrupt the political process and create high- profile attacks to create the perception of insecurity and adversely affect the elections.