After the US pull-out from Afghanistan, the Taliban has emerged as a force to be reckoned with. Taliban is now said to be the first extremist group with an air force, along with Humvees, tanks, artillery, machine guns, etc.; courtesy of the US govt.
newsbytesapp.com/news/world/afg…
The Taliban now has its hands on 22,174 Humvees, 634 M1117s, 155 MxxPro mine-proof vehicles, 169 M113 armored personnel carriers, 42,000 pick-up trucks and SUVs, and 8,000 trucks. #TalibanTerror
In terms of weaponry, the Taliban has reportedly seized 64,363 machine guns, 176 artillery pieces, 126,295 pistols, 358,530 assault rifles, along with 16,035 night vision goggles and 162,043 radios.
The group has also managed to get its hands on four C-130 transports, 23 Embraer EMB 314/A29 Super Tucanos, 28 Cessna 208s, 10 Cessna AC-208 strike aircraft, 43 MD530s, and 33 Mi-17s and US-60 Blackhawks each. By some estimate, these equipments are worth $85 billion.
Earlier, the Afghan Air Force was operating 167 aircraft by late June, according to the US-based Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (Sigar). After the US withdrew its troops and the Taliban gained ground, they continued to seize weapons from Afghan troops.
Since taking over Afghanistan, the Taliban has been sharing photographs of confiscated aircraft and other equipment. The group also boasts US-made weaponry along with combat gear as opposed to the characteristic salwar kameez and Kalashnikov assault rifles.
So, how did the Afghan Army get US gear? Well, between 2003-2016, during America's two-decade-long 'War on Terror' in Afghanistan, the US had supplied the Afghan Army with loads of machine guns, rifles, grenade launchers, etc. #ustroops
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