This Lead Inspector General (Lead IG) report to United States Congress on Operation Freedom’s Sentinel (OFS) is the fifth quarterly report detailing the overseas contingency operation (OCO). This report summarizes the quarter’s key events, provides an update on the OFS mission and its operating environment, and describes completed, ongoing, and planned Lead IG and partner agency work related to this OCO. This report covers the period from April 1, 2016, to June 30, 2016.
Under OFS, U.S. forces are conducting two complementary missions in Afghanistan: 1) the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)-led Resolute Support Mission to train, advise, assist, and equip Afghan National Defense and Security Forces, and 2) the U.S. counterterrorism mission against al Qaeda, the Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K), and their affiliates in Afghanistan. The objective of the Resolute Support Mission is to develop self-sustaining Afghan security forces that are capable of maintaining security under responsible Afghan civilian authorities. U.S. counterterrorism efforts remain focused on preventing Afghanistan from becoming a safe haven for terrorists planning attacks against the U.S. homeland and against U.S. interests and partners.
As discussed in more detail in the report, the overall security situation in Afghanistan remained challenging this quarter. The Afghan National Defense and Security Forces have been combatting an increasing number of attacks from the Taliban and terrorist organizations. To understand the OFS environment, the report examines the threats posed by various insurgent groups, significant combat developments, and efforts to reach a peace accord. The report then discusses the U.S. support for Resolute Support, and provides an assessment, based on information provided by commanders in Afghanistan, of the efforts to develop of the Afghan security forces.
This quarter, the Lead IG agencies and oversight partners released two reports related to OFS and opened five new investigations of fraud, waste, and abuse related to the OFS mission. As of June 30, 2016, the Lead IG agencies and oversight partners had 29 ongoing oversight projects and 25 ongoing OFS-related investigations.
Section 8L of the Inspector General Act of 1978, as amended, provides a mandate for the three Lead IG agencies—the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General (DoD OIG), Department of State Office of Inspector General (DoS OIG), and U.S. Agency for International Development Office of Inspector General (USAID OIG)—to work together to develop and carry out joint, comprehensive, and strategic oversight. Each IG retains statutory independence, but together they apply their extensive regional experience and in-depth institutional knowledge to conduct oversight of the OFS missions.