The Taliban vs Pakistan: Can they both lose?

Five years after the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, the Taliban is stronger than ever, Al Qaeda continues to operate under its protection, and Pakistan is learning the hard way that supporting jihadists comes with a price. Bill Roggio is joined by retired US Air Force Lieutenant Colonel and Long War Journal contributor Will Selber to assess the state of the Taliban's Islamic Emirate, the fractured and ineffective Afghan resistance, and the continued presence of Al Qaeda and the Islamic State's Khorasan Province. They also dismantle the persistent myth of a divided Taliban and examine why the jihadist regime faces little meaningful opposition to its rule.

Across the border, Pakistan is confronting a resurgent Taliban insurgency fueled by the same jihadist networks its military and intelligence services spent decades nurturing. Roggio and Selber examine the growing threat from the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan (TTP), the emergence of former Pakistani allies among its enemies, and Islamabad's increasingly futile reliance on airstrikes inside Afghanistan. The irony is difficult to ignore: Pakistan helped the Taliban defeat the United States and overthrow the Afghan government, only to find itself battling an insurgency operating from Taliban-controlled territory. The question is no longer whether Pakistan's jihadist strategy has backfired, but how much worse the consequences will become.