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Between 18,000 and 23,000 militants are operating in Afghanistan — Shoigu

Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu told SCO counterparts that 18,000–23,000 militants from over 20 groups are operating in Afghanistan, while praising Kabul's fight against Islamic State. Moscow is building a 'full-fledged partnership' with the Taliban, which it formally recognized in 2025.

By Tertius News AI Desk 2 outlets · 2 articles Version 1 Coverage May 14, 2026 Published Aug 15

Lead

Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu said on Thursday that an estimated 18,000–23,000 militants, belonging to more than 20 different groups, are currently operating in Afghanistan. Speaking at the 21st meeting of secretaries of relevant agencies of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) member states in Bishkek, Shoigu described the situation in Afghanistan as "of particular importance" for security in the SCO space, citing threats of terrorism and drug trafficking emanating from its territory.

Shoigu also outlined Russia's deepening engagement with Afghanistan's ruling Taliban, which Moscow formally recognized last year. His remarks, reported by both TASS and the Jerusalem Post, come as Russia encourages regional partners to expand cooperation with Kabul.

Coverage Comparison

The two outlets that reported the story approached it with different emphases. TASS, the Russian state news agency, focused on Shoigu's detailed security assessment, including specific figures on militant numbers and terrorist attacks. The Jerusalem Post, citing the Interfax news agency and Reuters, highlighted the diplomatic dimension—Russia's "full-fledged partnership" with the Taliban and its push for broader regional cooperation through the SCO.

Both reports agree on the core facts: Shoigu made the statements at the SCO meeting, and Russia sees cooperation with Kabul as essential for regional security. The Jerusalem Post framed the remarks within the context of Russia's recognition of the Taliban government and its 2025 decision to lift the ban on the movement, while TASS quoted Shoigu's praise for Kabul's efforts against Islamic State.

The two accounts also differ slightly in tone. TASS presented the statements as a straightforward security briefing, using direct quotes and technical details. The Jerusalem Post's report placed greater emphasis on the geopolitical implications, describing the partnership as "full-fledged" and noting the security threat from Islamist militant groups across a broad region.

Key Claims

Militant numbers: According to Shoigu, there are between 18,000 and 23,000 militants operating in Afghanistan, belonging to more than 20 different groups. This figure was reported by TASS, which attributed it to Shoigu's statement at the SCO meeting. The Jerusalem Post did not include this specific statistic.

Islamic State presence and activity: Shoigu said the Taliban is waging a "fierce armed struggle" against Islamic State, which he described as the Taliban's main ideological and political rival. He estimated the group's membership at around 3,000. TASS also reported that, according to Shoigu, Islamic State carried out 12 major terrorist attacks in 2025, killing 40 military servicemen and 25 civilians, and wounding more than 50 people.

Influx from Syria: Shoigu noted an increase in the influx of militants of Uyghur, Tajik, and Uzbek origin from Syria into Afghanistan, particularly from groups linked to the former terrorist alliance Hayat Tahrir al-Sham. He said Taliban security agencies have organized monitoring of arriving radicals, but some Islamists remain outside their purview. This was reported by TASS.

Russia's partnership with the Taliban: The Jerusalem Post, citing remarks attributed to Shoigu, reported that Russia is establishing a "full-fledged partnership" with the Taliban and encouraging other countries in the region to expand cooperation with Kabul. Shoigu described Moscow's approach as a "pragmatic dialogue" covering security, trade, culture, and humanitarian support. He also called on the SCO to revive its contact group with Afghanistan.

Recognition of the Taliban: The Jerusalem Post noted that Russia became the first country to formally recognize the Taliban government that seized power in August 2021, and that Russia lifted its ban on the Taliban in April 2025. The Taliban had been outlawed by Russia as a terrorist movement in 2003.

Perspectives

Russia (Sergei Shoigu, Security Council Secretary): Stresses the importance of cooperation with Kabul to address security threats, including terrorism and drug trafficking. Shoigu credits the Taliban with fighting Islamic State and frames Russia's engagement as pragmatic and necessary for regional stability.

Taliban (implicit in Shoigu's remarks): Though not directly quoted, the Taliban is portrayed by Shoigu as a partner in combating Islamic State, with its security agencies actively monitoring incoming militants from Syria. This perspective presents the Taliban as a stabilizing force, at least against Islamic State.

How each outlet told it

Jerusalem Post as of May 14, 2026, 10:31 AM UTC

Framing: Russia's partnership with Taliban — Informative

Facts Included:

Russia is establishing a full-fledged partnership with Afghanistan's ruling Taliban
Russia was the first country to formally recognize the Islamist Taliban government
Russia lifted its ban on the Taliban in 2025
Russia sees a need to work with Kabul due to a major security threat from Islamist militant groups

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TASS — English as of May 14, 2026, 9:31 AM UTC

Framing: Security situation in Afghanistan — Neutral

Facts Included:

Estimated 18,000-23,000 militants operating in Afghanistan
Taliban is waging a fierce armed struggle against Islamic State
Increase in the influx of militants of Uyghur, Tajik, and Uzbek origin from Syria into Afghanistan
Islamic State carried out 12 major terrorist attacks in 2025

Read the source article →

What was claimed, and who backed it

Each row is one claim, attributed to the outlet whose wording states it most clearly. Confidence rates how directly the source text states the claim — explicit and unhedged rates high; hedged, pieced-together, or internally inconsistent statements rate lower. It does not measure whether the claim is true. Status counts the distinct outlets we found asserting it — so a single-source claim can still show high confidence, and a multi-source claim can show medium. Every one of those outlets is named beside the status, so you can check the count against the list. For claims extracted before we began storing that list, the row says so: it names the outlet the claim is quoted from and states that we have not recorded which outlets backed it. Outlets wrote at different times, so a figure that evolves — a casualty count, for example — can legitimately differ between rows; check the "as of" time next to each claim's source.

Claim	Confidence	Status
ClaimRussia is establishing a full-fledged partnership with Afghanistan's ruling Taliban and is encouraging other countries in the region to expand cooperation with Kabul.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Jerusalem Post as of May 14, 2026, 10:31 AM UTC
ClaimRussia was the first country to formally recognize the Islamist Taliban government that seized power in August 2021.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Jerusalem Post as of May 14, 2026, 10:31 AM UTC
ClaimRussia lifted its ban on the Taliban in 2025.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Jerusalem Post as of May 14, 2026, 10:31 AM UTC
ClaimRussia sees a need to work with Kabul due to a major security threat from Islamist militant groups based in a string of countries from Afghanistan to the Middle East.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Jerusalem Post as of May 14, 2026, 10:31 AM UTC
ClaimAn estimated 18,000-23,000 militants, members of more than 20 different groups, are operating in Afghanistan.	ConfidenceMedium	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of May 14, 2026, 9:31 AM UTC
ClaimThe Taliban is waging a fierce armed struggle against Islamic State.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of May 14, 2026, 9:31 AM UTC
ClaimThere has been an increase in the influx of militants of Uyghur, Tajik, and Uzbek origin from Syria into Afghanistan.	ConfidenceMedium	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of May 14, 2026, 9:31 AM UTC
ClaimThe Islamic State carried out 12 major terrorist attacks in 2025, killing 40 military servicemen and 25 civilians, and wounding more than 50 people.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of May 14, 2026, 9:31 AM UTC

Transparency & Audit Trail

2 outlets · 2 articles consulted: Jerusalem Post, TASS — English 8 claims extracted Version 1 Written 2026-08-15