Taliban's $85bn Worth of Arsenal: Why Did the US Leave its Equipment Behind?

Taliban octopus’ hands are now controlling a scary arsenal- worth around $85 billion of equipment following the US troops withdrawal and the failure of Afghan government to keep control and stay in power.

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A graphic was released by The Times and The Sunday Times according to data shared by the US Government Accounting Office (GAO) and the Special Inspector General for Afghan Reconstruction (SIGAR) showing that the Taliban fighters totally have their hands on an enormous arsenal.

Over 64,300 machine guns, 358,530 assault rifles, more than 22,170 Humvee and 8,000 trucks, GAO revealed. Moreover, SIGAR shared the Islamist movement controlling over 109 various types of helicopters.

Multi videos were released showing the Taliban group enjoying its new toys left behind by the US army. One of the clips shows some of the Taliban fighters attempting to fly a UH-60 Black Hawk around at the Kandahar airport. Another video shows hundreds of US guns and rifles placed on the floor as members are seen picking up their new equipment.

Photos of the Badari 313- the special forces of the Taliban fighters- are already circulating on the internet as the forces can be seen wearing US troops’ look alike suits and carrying US machine guns while riding leftover trucks.

The special unit is armed with modern sidearms, modern combat boots, and even night vision goggles. It is super hard to distinguish from any other country's special combat units.

The US and the Taliban have signed on Feb. 29, 2020, the Doha Agreement that paved the way for the withdrawal from Afghanistan of "all military forces of the United States, its allies, and Coalition partners." About 13,000 US troops were in Afghanistan.

However, the US hasn't taken back any of its heavy equipment in Afghanistan despite the fact that it had time to do so as the start of American troops' withdrawal was before the Taliban's full seizure of power.

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Since the start of the US troops’ withdrawal from Afghanistan, Taliban started to control major cities in the country and before the full withdrawal of the American army, the Taliban has captured keynote areas including the capital Kabul which fell on 15 August 2021.

Ousted Afghan President Ashraf Ghani fled his country to the UAE while carrying bags full of cash. However, the Taliban government said that he made a mistake and that he must return Afghanistan's 'money'.