Half a million weapons left in Afghanistan sold, smuggled to militant groups: report

Half a million weapons recovered by Taliban in Afghanistan following United States (US) forces’ withdrawal, have been sold, smuggled or lost to militant groups, a leading foreign media outlet has claimed.

After regaining control of Afghanistan in August 2021, the Taliban seized around one million weapons as well as pieces of military equipment and vehicles, most of which had been funded by the US, the media report quoted a former Afghan official as claiming.

In August 2021, when the Afghan Taliban were proceeding to Kabul, soldiers surrendered or fled while abandoning their weapons and vehicles. US forces also left their equipment behind.

The cache included American-made firearms such as M4 and M16 rifles as well as older weapons left behind during decades of conflict. 

The outlet further quoted sources as claiming that the Taliban admitted at a closed-door United Nations Security Council's (UNSC) Sanctions Committee in Doha late last year that at least half of this equipment was now “unaccounted” for. 

In its report in February this year, the UN said that al-Qaeda affiliates, including Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, the East Turkestan Islamic Movement and Yemen's Ansarullah movement, were accessing Taliban-captured weapons or buying them on the black market.

Meanwhile, deputy spokesperson for the Taliban government, Hamdullah Fitrat, while speaking to the outlet, dismissed the claims of smuggling weapons to terrorists. “All light and heavy weapons are securely stored. We strongly reject claims of smuggling or loss,” he said.

The media report further quoted a source as claiming that “hundreds” of unused Humvees, mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicles (MRAPS) and Black Hawk helicopters remained in Kandahar warehouses.

The Taliban have showcased some of the captured equipment in their propaganda videos, but their ability to operate and maintain advanced machinery like Black Hawk helicopters is limited due to a shortage of trained personnel and technical skills. As a result, much of this high-tech equipment remains out of service.

They have, however, effectively used simpler equipment such as Humvees and small arms in their operations. 

It merits a mention that the report comes while US President Donald Trump repeatedly says he would reclaim weapons from Afghanistan, noting that $85 billion of advanced weaponry was left there.

“Afghanistan is one of the biggest sellers of military equipment in the world, you know why? They're selling the equipment that we left,” President Trump said during his first cabinet meeting of the new administration.

“I want to look into this. If we need to pay them, that's fine, but we want our military equipment back.”