French and Algerian fighters, some arriving from Syria, have joined the ranks of ISIL in northern Afghanistan where the militants have established new bases, multiple international and Afghan sources have said.
It is the first time that the presence of French ISIL fighters has been recorded in Afghanistan, and comes as analysts suggest that foreigners may be heading for the country after being driven from Syria and Iraq.
It is also a troubling sign as France, which has faced the worst of the ISIL-inspired violence in Europe since 2015, debates how to handle hundreds of its citizens who went to fight for the group in the Middle East.
A number of Algerian and French nationals entered the largely ISIL-controlled district of Darzab in the northern province of Jowzjan in November, said district governor Baaz Mohammad Dawar.
At least two women were among the arrivals, who were travelling with a translator from Tajikistan as well as Chechens and Uzbeks, Mr Dawar added.
European and Afghan security sources in Kabul confirmed Mr Dawar's claim that French citizens were among the fighters - though one cautioned: "We do not know how many there are."
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Read more:
Afghans report ISIL reign of terror in northern province
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Three of the Algerians seen in Darzab are believed to have been in Syria and Iraq, Mr Dawar said, suggesting they may link the ISIL affiliate in Afghanistan and Pakistan with the main group in the Middle East.
When it first emerged in 2015, the so-called Khorasan Province overran large parts of the eastern provinces of Nangarhar and Kunar, though initially its part in the Afghan conflict was overshadowed by the Taliban.
The militants have since spread north, including in Jowzjan on the border with Uzbekistan, and carried out multiple devastating attacks in the capital, Kabul.
Mohammad Raza Ghafoori, the Jowzjan provincial governor's spokesman, said French-speaking Caucasian men and women had been seen training ISIL fighters in Darzab.
He cited reports saying that around 50 children, some as young as 10, have also been recruited by the fighters.
Darzab residents said roughly 200 foreigners had set up camp just a few hundred metres from the village of Bibi Mariam.
One local man who gave his name as Hajji said the fighters were of several nationalities, including French, and were tall, aged in their late 20s, and dressed in military clothing.
"They ride their [motor] bikes, go to the border and come back, but they talk to nobody," he said.
Hashar, a former district village chief, said some were training others to use suicide bombs and lay mines.
"They are ... bringing misery to normal people," he said. Other villagers added that many residents had fled the area.
Locals along with Mr Dawar, the district governor, warned the fighters were also exploiting natural resources, such as precious stones and metals.
One of the security sources said two of the French militants had been nicknamed "The Engineers" and appeared to be organising some sort of extraction, "but we do not know what they are looking for".
Several European services believe the fighters are arriving through Tajikistan, the source said, adding that at least one Frenchman arrested there in July said he had wanted to join ISIL in Afghanistan.
Afghanistan has long attracted foreign fighters, from the mujaheddin during the 1980s war against Soviet invaders to Al Qaeda's later use of the country as a haven.
The Pentagon has said that ISIL militants in Afghanistan number fewer than 1,000.
But the growing presence of foreign fighters among them indicates that ISIL "seeks to create an external operations node for new waves of global attacks", warned analysts at the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War recently.
Aymenn Jawad Al Tamimi, an expert on extremist groups, said he did not think the presence of foreign fighters in Afghanistan meant that ISIL was necessarily "shifting its base".
The group's "natural home is Iraq and Syria, but I presume many of the foreigners in particular are taking the opportunity either to escape entirely or moving to other battlefields for IS where they might prove more useful," he said.
The head of US forces in Afghanistan, General John Nicholson, has vowed the group will be "annihilated", and Washington notoriously dropped the so-called "Mother Of All Bombs" on an ISIL stronghold in Nangarhar in April.
But as the number of fighters grows in Darzab, the villager Hajji saidthere were no signs of pro-government forces in the district.
"[The] government is God damned," he said. "There is no government here."
Company%20profile
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SCORES IN BRIEF
Lahore Qalandars 186 for 4 in 19.4 overs
(Sohail 100,Phil Salt 37 not out, Bilal Irshad 30, Josh Poysden 2-26)
bt Yorkshire Vikings 184 for 5 in 20 overs
(Jonathan Tattersall 36, Harry Brook 37, Gary Ballance 33, Adam Lyth 32, Shaheen Afridi 2-36).
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
The%20specs
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How to turn your property into a holiday home
- Ensure decoration and styling – and portal photography – quality is high to achieve maximum rates.
- Research equivalent Airbnb homes in your location to ensure competitiveness.
- Post on all relevant platforms to reach the widest audience; whether you let personally or via an agency know your potential guest profile – aiming for the wrong demographic may leave your property empty.
- Factor in costs when working out if holiday letting is beneficial. The annual DCTM fee runs from Dh370 for a one-bedroom flat to Dh1,200. Tourism tax is Dh10-15 per bedroom, per night.
- Check your management company has a physical office, a valid DTCM licence and is licencing your property and paying tourism taxes. For transparency, regularly view your booking calendar.
SPECS
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Essentials
The flights
Etihad and Emirates fly direct from the UAE to Delhi from about Dh950 return including taxes.
The hotels
Double rooms at Tijara Fort-Palace cost from 6,670 rupees (Dh377), including breakfast.
Doubles at Fort Bishangarh cost from 29,030 rupees (Dh1,641), including breakfast. Doubles at Narendra Bhawan cost from 15,360 rupees (Dh869). Doubles at Chanoud Garh cost from 19,840 rupees (Dh1,122), full board. Doubles at Fort Begu cost from 10,000 rupees (Dh565), including breakfast.
The tours
Amar Grover travelled with Wild Frontiers. A tailor-made, nine-day itinerary via New Delhi, with one night in Tijara and two nights in each of the remaining properties, including car/driver, costs from £1,445 (Dh6,968) per person.
Teaching your child to save
Pre-school (three - five years)
You can’t yet talk about investing or borrowing, but introduce a “classic” money bank and start putting gifts and allowances away. When the child wants a specific toy, have them save for it and help them track their progress.
Early childhood (six - eight years)
Replace the money bank with three jars labelled ‘saving’, ‘spending’ and ‘sharing’. Have the child divide their allowance into the three jars each week and explain their choices in splitting their pocket money. A guide could be 25 per cent saving, 50 per cent spending, 25 per cent for charity and gift-giving.
Middle childhood (nine - 11 years)
Open a bank savings account and help your child establish a budget and set a savings goal. Introduce the notion of ‘paying yourself first’ by putting away savings as soon as your allowance is paid.
Young teens (12 - 14 years)
Change your child’s allowance from weekly to monthly and help them pinpoint long-range goals such as a trip, so they can start longer-term saving and find new ways to increase their saving.
Teenage (15 - 18 years)
Discuss mutual expectations about university costs and identify what they can help fund and set goals. Don’t pay for everything, so they can experience the pride of contributing.
Young adulthood (19 - 22 years)
Discuss post-graduation plans and future life goals, quantify expenses such as first apartment, work wardrobe, holidays and help them continue to save towards these goals.
* JP Morgan Private Bank
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
