ISIL fighters crossing into Afghanistan escalate tensions on Central Asia's southern borders - CIS Anti-Terrorism Center
MOSCOW. Feb 19 (Interfax) - More than 20 terrorist groups are operating in Afghanistan, according to the head of the CIS Anti-Terrorism Center, Andrei Novikov.
"According to our partners, more than 20 terrorist groups are operating in Afghanistan alone," Novikov said at a meeting of heads of CIS member states' national anti-terrorism centers on Tuesday.
CIS security services have noted their "ideological and political diversity, intersection of interests, and disagreements," Novikov said.
The situation in Syria and the Afghanistan-Pakistan zone remains complicated, and there is still a threat coming from international terrorist organizations to CIS member states, he said.
"The 'New Hijra' project of ideologists of ISIL [banned in Russia] is facilitating the appearance of terrorist threats inside the CIS. Unfortunately, this forecast has come true, just like the theory that ISIL and other terrorist organizations crossing from Syria and Iraq to Afghanistan would create a terrorist hub in the area and heighten pressure on the security of southern borders of CIS member states in Central Asia," Novikov said.