GENEVA (Sputnik) — The ongoing conflict in Afghanistan has become more fragmented and therefore more complicated as new actors enter into play, inevitably leading to various incidents where national security is put at risk, Peter Maurer, the president of the International Committee of the Red Cross, told Sputnik.
"We are concerned that the security environment is getting much more complicated because Afghanistan is a conflict which gets more fragmented and the fragmentation is now more visible and it translates into security incidents… I think we are among the first ones to recognize and we have recognized now for a long time that this remains a highly unstable situation in which there seems to be an outstanding political solution, which brings stability in the country," Maurer stressed.
The ICRC president drew attention to the phenomenon of an "increasingly de-structured" environment in Afghanistan.
"When you look five or 10 years back this was a complicated conflict for a long time but it was also a relatively structured conflict where we knew very well where the Taliban [terrorist group, banned in Russia] was and where the government was, and we had contacts with both sides, while at the present moment for quite some time we are aware that there are different groups which we did not know beforehand, which appear in the operation theater," Maurer said.
On Wednesday, a powerful blast hit the Afghan capital city, Kabul, leaving at least 100 people dead and over 600 wounded, according to media reports, citing a Public Health Ministry source. The explosion also caused damage to numerous buildings, including the French and German embassies. Daesh claimed responsibility for the attack.
The lack of control and instability turned the country into home to the largest opium poppy production and distribution network in the world.
The Afghan National Defense and Security Forces are currently conducting joint offensive operations to combat terrorism across the country.
