Islamic State May Join Hands With Taliban In Afghanistan, Australia Warns

Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop said on Monday that Islamic State may expand its operations to Afghanistan. She insisted on the claim even though there is hardly any evidence of IS’ presence on Afghan soil.

Bishop said that she was aware of "some evidence of a connection" between the Taliban and IS during her visit to Afghanistan. The Australian foreign minister hosted annual security talks with Britain's Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond and Defence Secretary Michael Fallon. She admitted that there was no “great deal of evidence” of IS’ presence in Afghanistan. However, she said that Australia was aware that IS might turn its attentions away from Iraq and Syria. “There is an element of the Taleban that would be receptive to its brutal ideology,” The Straits Times quotes Bishop.

The security talks focused on Middle Eastern issues as the national representatives discussed about the threat of IS and foreign fighters effectively getting recruited to the extremists organisation online. Bishop justified the focus on Iraq as Australia was “certainly conscious of the need to contain, disrupt and degrade and ultimately defeat ISIL, Daesh, wherever it exists.” IS’ alleged involvement in Iraq will double Australia’s resolve to defeat it. Australia and the U.K. have agreed to use each other’s diplomatic facilities to counter terrorism.

The Australian FM said that Australia and the U.K. were in agreement with the fact that there was “an epic battle.” “We face an epic battle with this with this strain of terrorism, not only as open liberal western democracies but as nation states," Israel National News quotes Bishop. Bishop said that terrorist organisations like IS and Boko Haram had territorial ambitions and respect no governments, laws and boundaries. She added that such organisations had no regard for humanity or civilised behaviour.

Hammond said that the Monday talks had been based on terror attacks in Paris and the execution of two Japanese hostages. The British Foreign Secretary earlier visited the Lindt Café, the location where the infamous Sydney Siege had taken place. He referred to the term “extremist Islamism” and said that people should be prepared to deal with it wherever it emerged.

Contact the writer: s.mukhopadhyay@IBTimes.com.au