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The Islamic State group in Afghanistan has lost considerable turf in the war-torn nation over the last year. The terrorist organization has fallen from a height of controlling 11 districts in Nangarhar province to just a few, according to Gen. John Nicholson, the U.S. commander overseeing operations in Afghanistan.

Operating primarily out of southern Nangarhar province, ISIS primary goal has been the creation of a caliphate in Afghanistan, with Jalalabad as its capital. This was their aspiration, but they failed to achieve it. Nicholson told lawmakers on Capitol Hill on Thursday.

Since authorities were granted to begin striking ISIS targets, the U.S. has conducted several major operations alongside Afghan forces, according to Nicholson. Those operations have had success pushing ISIS into only a small handful of districts and reducing their geographic space, he said.

We believe we've reduced their total end strength to less than 1,000 remaining in Afghanistan, said Capt. William Salvin, a spokesman for the train, advise, assist mission in Afghanistan.

However, ISIS is still a potent force with the ability to launch deadly suicide attacks in Kabul, Nicholson told senators.

They have attacked Shia targets, primarily. They attacked at a peaceful demonstration, they've attacked at Shia mosques, they've attacked on Shia religious holidays, Nicholson explained.

Further complicating efforts to combat Islamic State fighters in Afghanistan is the sudden involvement of Russia in the Afghan conflict. Claiming to support the Taliban as a counter to ISIS expansion in the region, Nicholson sees a more nefarious objective from the Kremlin.

I think it's to undermine the United States and NATO," Nicholson said when asked by Sen. David Perdue, R-Ga., about Russian intentions in the region. This narrative that they promote is that the Taliban are fighting Islamic State and the Afghan government is not as fighting Islamic State and that therefore there could be spillover of this group into the region, Nicholson explained. This is a false narrative.

Though the Taliban and ISIS see each other as rivals, conflicts between the two militant groups have not had the same effects as operations carried out by U.S and Afghan forces. This year alone we have reduced their fighters by half, their territory by two thirds, we've killed their leaderin fact, their top 12 leadersand continue to disrupt their operation, Nicholson added.

The core of ISIS fighters in Afghanistan hail from remnants of the Pakistani Taliban, referred to as the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and other external foreign groups such as the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan.

I would comment that this group is universally rejected by the Afghan people. These are primarily non-Afghans in this group, Nicholson said.

On Sunday night, Afghan forces bolstered by U.S. airpower launched another major operation against ISIS in Nangarhar province, according to a report by Voice of America.

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Top US general: ISIS is losing ground in Afghanistan - Military Times

FORT HOOD Family members of about 200 3rd Cavalry Regiment Brave Rifles troopers were in for a Valentines Day treat Tuesday as the 1st Cavalry Division welcomed the soldiers home from a nine-month deployment to Afghanistan at Cooper Field.

Col. Robert Whittle, 1st Cavalry Division home station commander, gave a brief speech to the soldiers before releasing them to their families.

To our Brave Rifles troopers, welcome home we are incredibly proud of you, he said. To the families, thank you you make us Cav Strong. To all, be safe and take care of each other. We need you.

The regiment deployed about 1,200 soldiers in late May and early June in support of Operation Freedoms Sentinel to train, advise and assist Afghanistan National Army forces in taking control of their nation. An additional 500 soldiers deployed in July.

The unit is passing control of the mission to the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, from Fort Bliss, and expects to have the final soldiers back at Fort Hood on Thursday.

Sgt. Ismael Robles III was met by his 4-year-old daughter, Isabella, girlfriend Samantha Garza and his parents.

It feels amazing to be home, Robles said as he held his daughter. The best thing about being home is family.

A grinning Isabella was enthusiastic about her daddy being home and told him she was going to tie him to tree to keep him from leaving again.

Did she miss him? Uh-huh, said the girl.

Garza said it felt great to have Robles home.

Him being away was the worst part. This was my first deployment, she said. It takes a lot to get used to. I surprised him for Valentines Day I told him I wasnt coming!

Robles dad, Ismael Jr., was emotional at seeing his son come home safe from his third deployment.

I worry about him all the time we hear the news when the worst happens to others, he said. This is my baby boy."

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Brave Rifles welcome home troopers from Afghanistan on Valentine's Day - The Killeen Daily Herald

BBC News

Gun shy Afghanistan sniffer dog book to inspire new readers BBC News The story of a sniffer dog who was retired from the front line in Afghanistan after becoming scared of loud noises will be used to inspire those who struggle to read. Vidar, a Belgian Malinois, hunted out roadside bombs and weapons with the Army in ...

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Gun shy Afghanistan sniffer dog book to inspire new readers - BBC News

MOSCOW

Russia is expected to host a second round of international talks on Afghanistan in Moscow on February 15, reports Russia's TASS news agency, with Afghanistan representatives invited for the first time.

Russia says it wants stability and cooperation in the fight against extremists in the region. But Afghan officials are not happy with Russias direct talks with the Taliban, which U.S. officials say are aimed at undermining their efforts.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced the peace talks on February 7, during a visit by his Afghan counterpart, Salahuddin Rabbani.

China and Pakistan were at December talks in Moscow, while Iran, India and Afghanistan representatives are invited to participate at this weeks round for the first time.

It is not yet clear which representatives have accepted the invitation.

The Russian side will be represented by special presidential envoy for Afghanistan Zamir Kabulov and Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov, reports TASS.

US not invited

The essence of these talks is to get together all the countries that have at least some influence in Afghanistan: on the government, or on any informal level, on the armed opposition level, and to work out a certain consensus, so that these countries could implement it in their policies, says the Center of Contemporary Afghanistan Studies Dmitry Verlhoturov.

The United States has not been invited to participate in the talks.

The exclusion of Afghanistan from the first round raised concerns among officials in Kabul as well as in the United States.

We should not overestimate [the] real ability of [the] Afghan government to control its territory, says Director of the Analytical Center at the Institute for International Studies at MGIMO University Andrey Kazantsev. And this was probably one of the reasons why [the] Russian government sometimes acted in cooperation with other players but not with Afghan government.

Russia wants security cooperation to fight against Islamic State terrorists gaining ground in Central Asia.

Afghanistan is a place where there are many international terrorists. Many of them are with Russian passports or they are Central Asians, Russian-speaking Central Asians, who can also represent a threat for Russia, says Kazantsev.

Taliban and Islamic State

While the United Nations says the Taliban is responsible for five times as many deaths and injuries, Islamic State group attacks are growing fast in Afghanistan with a ten-fold growth in 2016.

There is (Russian) expectation that the Taliban leaders could be talked into opposing the Islamic State and defeating them, says the Center of Contemporary Afghanistan Studies Verlhoturov. What is it for? So that Afghanistan wouldn't become a shelter for the leaders and militants of the IS who would flee in case of defeat in Syria and Iraq.

U.S. officials say Russias contacts with the Taliban, along with Irans and Pakistans, lends them legitimacy and support, while undermining the Afghan government and NATO efforts to fight the extremists.

On one hand it's absurd to say that Russia doesn't strive to stabilize the situation in Afghanistan, says Verlhoturov. On the other hand, the Russian leadership is very concerned that the U.S. has acquired several big air bases there that could be used for the deployment of nuclear bombers.

Russia also looks at the conflict in Afghanistan somewhat cynically, says Kazantsev.

We know that in some parts of Afghanistan, especially in the east of Afghanistan, there is a real war between Taliban and Islamic State. So, If one terrorist wants to kill another terrorist, why should we prevent this?

The top U.S. commander in Afghanistan says thousands more U.S. troops are needed there to train Afghanistans forces to better handle threats to security.

Ricardo Marquina Montanana contributed to this report.

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Moscow Expected to Host Afghanistan Talks - Voice of America

U.S.-led international forces in Afghanistan are investigating reports that at least 18 civilians were killed in American airstrikes last week, officials said Monday.

The airstrikes occurred Feb. 9 and 10 in Sangin, a heavily contested district in Helmand provincewhere U.S. forces have been offering increased support to Afghan soldiers seeking to dislodge Taliban militants.

The United Nations mission in Afghanistan said over the weekend that initial inquiries suggest that the airstrikes killed at least 18 civilians, nearly all women and children.

Brig. Gen. Charles Cleveland, deputy chief of staff for the U.S.-led coalition, confirmed that the U.S. conducted airstrikes in Sangin last week and said investigators were looking into the reports.

The investigation is continuing and has not yet reached any conclusions, Cleveland said.

The U.S. airstrikes come amid a widening battle in Helmand, the poppy-growing province and Taliban haven that saw the most casualties among Afghan civilians in 2016and the most U.S. military fatalities since the 2001 American-led invasion.

In recent months, hundreds of U.S. troops, operating mainly in an advisory role, have been deployed to the province to assist Afghan soldiers in battling Taliban fighters who have claimed control of most of the districts.

A spokesman for the Afghan defense ministry, Dawlat Waziri, denied the reports of civilian casualties but said the ministry had sent a delegation to Sangin to investigate the incident.

Abdul Ghafar Akhund, a 54-year-old supervisor of polio vaccination programs and prayer leader at a mosque in Sangin, said his wife, two daughters, a son and a daughter-in-law were killed when an airstrike hit his house. A 9-year-old boy was injured, he said.

Akhund, who was away from home, returned to find his house destroyed. He denied that there were Taliban members in the area, saying U.S. troops had visited his neighborhood days before the incident.

The Americans have been taking revenge on us, he said. They dont differentiate between civilians and noncivilians, women and children. They must coordinate with the Afghan government.

U.S. airstrikes have been increasing in Afghanistan since former President Obama expanded the militarys authority to conduct operations against the Taliban and Islamic State. The U.N. reported last week that airstrikes caused 250 deaths and 340 injuries in Afghanistan in 2016, twice the number recorded the year before.

Special correspondent Faizy reported from Kabul and Times staff writer Shashank Bengali from Sofia, Bulgaria.

shashank.bengali@latimes.com

Follow @SBengali on Twitter for more news from South Asia

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A US airstrike may have killed 18 civilians, 'nearly all women and children,' UN report says - Los Angeles Times