In Afghanistan, the Taliban not only got their hands on the country, but also an arsenal of modern US weapons. This is now demonstrated in propaganda videos.
The Taliban have taken power in Afghanistan without any significant military resistance. They also fell into their hands with large quantities of weapons and material from the disintegrated Afghan army. Among them: modern equipment from the USA, which was actually intended for the fight against the Taliban.
Taliban fighters are now driving through Kabul in American military vehicles and carrying American-style rifles instead of the Kalashnikovs that were common in the past. A propaganda video published on the Internet shows fighters wearing the complete outfit of an American special unit: uniform, helmets with night vision devices, bulletproof vests and the US Army’s M4 assault rifle. According to some media reports, the fighters equipped in this way are now patrolling as a Taliban special unit in Kabul.
Vehicles, planes, weapons
It is still unclear exactly what weapons, equipment and military equipment the Taliban captured. According to information from Reuters, US officials currently believe that the Taliban have stolen more than 2,000 armored vehicles, including many of the popular US Humvees. In addition, several dozen planes, helicopters and drones.
A fleet of aircraft at the Mazar-i-Sharif air base, which were about to fall into the hands of the Taliban, was bombed last weekend by the US army. And some Afghan fighter pilots fled the country with their aircraft shortly before just short of the time.
But otherwise: “Anything that has not been destroyed now belongs to the Taliban,” as Reuters quoted an anonymous US official as saying. There is a risk that these weapons will be used against civilians or passed on to other militant groups such as the Islamic State. Even states like China or Russia could be interested in more complex weapon systems.
It is considered likely that the US Army took its most valuable high-tech equipment with it when it was withdrawn. But a considerable arsenal of weapons, ammunition and equipment should now be in the hands of the Taliban. Between 2002 and 2017, the US provided the Afghan military with weapons and equipment valued at an estimated $ 28 billion, Reuters writes. These included at least 600,000 infantry weapons, 160,000 communication devices and 16,000 night vision devices.
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