Joshua Foust quoted in Reuters
ASP Fellow Joshua Foust is quoted in a Reuters report on how arsonists are contributing to school truancy in Afghanistan.
“Over the last two years, the Taliban have moved away from large set-piece combat maneuvers and focused more on intimidation and social and political control,” said Joshua Foust, an expert on Afghanistan and Central Asia at the Washington-based American Security Project.
“Shutting down schools is one way of establishing control.”
Attacks against schools in Afghanistan, particularly those educating girls, have driven students to defend themselves, sometimes taking turns to stand guard at school entrances. The Afghan government cites the Taliban in poison and arson attacks that have forced the closure of 550 schools across 11 provinces. Recently, Takhar province instated new security measures following four poison attacks over a two month period. NATO managed to control tensions in Takhar, a hub of crime and militancy, but the handover to Afghan forces could see a change in the province’s security:
“Now that it’s under Afghan control, we’re seeing what I expect we’ll see in a lot of places: all the many armed groups vying for control,” Foust said.
“Someone will eventually come out on top if they’re left to their own devices … it just might not be someone we’d prefer.”
Read the full article here.
