Islamic State Is Gaining Ground In Afghanistan

Reuters: Exclusive: In turf war with Afghan Taliban, Islamic State loyalists gain ground

Fighters loyal to Islamic State have seized substantial territory in Afghanistan for the first time, witnesses and officials said, wresting areas in the east from rival Taliban insurgents in a new threat to stability.

Witnesses who fled fighting in Nangarhar province told Reuters that hundreds of insurgents pledging allegiance to Islamic State pushed out the Taliban, scorching opium poppy fields that help to fund the Taliban's campaign to overthrow the Afghan government.

They also distributed directives purportedly from Islamic State's Middle East-based chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, although it was not clear whether he issued them for the Afghan theater or if previous edicts may have been translated.

WNU Editor: Last year the Islamic State was nowhere to be seen in Afghanistan .... today ... they are in 3 provinces .... Afghan Official: Islamic State Present in at Least 3 Provinces (AP). Yup .... they are expanding.

Update: Islamic State Eying Afghanistan’s Natural Resources -- Brian M. Perkins, The Diplomat