Why Afghanistan suffers unrelenting attacks

Afghanistan has endured a month of relentless attacks claimed by the Taliban and a rival Islamic State affiliate, capped by Saturday’s assault, in which a Taliban suicide bomber driving an ambulance filled with explosives struck in the heart of Kabul, killing 95 people.

WHO IS DOING THIS AND WHAT DO THEY WANT?

The Taliban have been waging an insurgency since they were driven from power by U.S. and Afghan forces after the Sept. 11 attacks. In recent years they have seized districts across the country and carried out near-daily attacks, mainly targeting security forces and the U.S.-backed government.

The Islamic State affiliate emerged in 2014, as the U.S. and NATO were winding down their combat mission, and has clashed with both Afghan forces and the Taliban. The group consists largely of Uzbek militants driven out of Pakistan and disillusioned former Taliban fighters. They bear particular animosity toward Afghanistan’s Shiite minority, which they view as apostates deserving of death.

Both groups want to overthrow the Afghan government and drive out foreign forces, but the Taliban have a more narrow focus on Afghanistan. They have met with Afghan officials in the past and say they are open to direct peace talks with the United States, an offer Washington has refused. The more radical IS views Afghanistan as a province in a worldwide Islamic caliphate headquartered in Syria and Iraq.

Both groups hope their attacks will “delegitimize” the government and “create a distance” between the authorities and the people they rule, says Andrew Wilder, Asia Programs vice president at the U.S. Institute of Peace.

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