The Taliban Shadow

Spearhead Analysis

The latest media reports indicate that the Lashkar e Zil (The Shadow Army or Army of Shadows) is the organization responsible for the attacks on security forces in Azad Kashmir. With the Tehreek Taliban Pakistan at its core the LeZ is said to include the Herkat Ul Jehad Islami (HUJI), the Lashkar Jhangvi, the Afghan Taliban militias of Mulla Omar, the Haqqani Network and the Herkat Islami. The overarching organization remains Al Qaeda. Their zone of operation straddles the Pakistan-Afghanistan border with the FATA especially North and South Waziristan areas, Bajaur, Swat, Peshawer and Khyber areas on the Pakistan side and Khost, Kabul, Kandahar, Nuristan, Wardak, Paktika, Ghazni and Kunar on the Afghan side. Recent attacks indicate that they have presence and capacity in entire Afghanistan and as far as Karachi in Pakistan. The attack on the CIA’s Forward Operating Base in Khost is the best indicator of their intelligence and planning capabilities as well as their networked alliances.