US National Intelligence Considers 4 Arab Countries More Dangerous Than Afghanistan

The US National Intelligence Agency (NIA) considered that Afghanistan no longer poses the "greatest threat" to the United States of America (USA), while there are 4 Arab countries that currently represent this threat.

At the annual National Intelligence and Security Conference in Washington, the Directress of the NIA   Avril Haynes said that Afghanistan is no longer at the top of the United States' concerns regarding international terrorist threats to America, according to what was reported by Bloomberg.

She added that this is America's position "even amid persistent concerns from some critics who argue that Afghanistan could become a haven for terrorist organizations such as ISIS and Al-Qaeda (terrorists) to regroup after the US withdrawal."

On August 26, the “ISIS-Khorasan” terrorist organization launched a suicide operation targeting Kabul Airport amid the process of evacuating American forces and nationals from Afghanistan.

The attack killed  13 American soldiers and dozens of Afghans.

The directress  of NIA stressed that "terrorist threats from 4 Arab countries, namely Somalia, Yemen, Syria and Iraq, and specifically ISIS, pose a greater danger than those that may come from Afghanistan."

And she continued: "With regard to the United States, and the current threat from terrorist groups, we do not prioritize Afghanistan at the top of the list, what we are looking at is Yemen, Somalia, Syria, and Iraq, and here we see the biggest threat."

Haynes pointed out that the collection of intelligence information in Afghanistan "dwindled" after the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan and the fall of the US-backed government, stressing at the same time that the intelligence prepared for this situation "some time ago."

She noted that the primary focus of intelligence now is to monitor "any possible reconfiguration of terrorist organizations" in Afghanistan.

Haynes' comments came as the Biden administration continues to be criticized by both Republicans and Democrats for the precipitous withdrawal of the United States from Afghanistan in the wake of the Taliban's seizure of power last month.