Both Consider ISIS As Enemy, Taliban Warns US To Stop Operation Of Drones In Afghanistan

United States drone illustration. (Wikimedia Commons/Fg Off Owen Cheverton)

JAKARTA - The Taliban issued a strong warning against the United States (US), asking the country to stop operating their drones or drones over Afghan airspace.

"The US has violated all rights and international law and its commitments to the Taliban in Doha, Qatar, by operating this drone in Afghanistan," the Taliban said in a statement on Twitter.

"We call on all countries, especially the United States, to treat Afghanistan in accordance with international rights, laws and commitments, to prevent to prevent any negative consequences," the statement continued.

US officials were not immediately available for comment on the warnings issued by the Taliban.

The Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan last month, after most of the US and other Western militaries left, ending a military and diplomatic mission that began soon after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States.

US officials, concerned about the rise of Al-Qaeda and the strengthening of the ISIL (ISIS) affiliate in Afghanistan, have repeatedly said the US will maintain an "over-the-horizon" capability in responding to threats in Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, Taliban leaders deny ISIS and Al-Qaeda militants are active in the country, although ISIS recently claimed responsibility for a bomb attack in the eastern city of Jalalabad.

As proof of their seriousness in fighting terrorism, the Taliban arrested around 80 members of ISIS Khorasan (ISIS-K) or ISKP, and killed ISIS-K figures such as Abu Omar Khorasani and Farooq Bengalzai, an ISIL leader from Pakistan, citing Al Jazeera September 27.

Observers say the strategy will rely on technology-based intelligence monitoring and attacks launched from abroad. It remains unclear how the US will navigate the strategy in the face of the Taliban opposition.

Both the US and the Taliban view ISIS-K as an enemy, offering the possibility of cooperation. However, critics say the Taliban is overplaying its ability to fight the group, which it has promised to eradicate.

ISKP has claimed responsibility for the August 26 attack on the then US-controlled international airport in Kabul and more recently the bomb attack in the eastern city of Jalalabad.

Meanwhile, human rights monitors have warned that "over-the-horizon" attacks could inflict greater casualties on civilians than those carried out based on intelligence gathering on the ground.

Adding to these concerns was a US drone strike on August 29 in Kabul that Washington later acknowledged killed 10 civilians, and not ISKP members.