TALIBAN SEIZE U.S. WEAPONRY AND MILITARY EQUIPMENT LEFT BEHIND.
Some vehicles, aircraft disabled before pullout
Shaky video footage distributed by the Taliban Tuesday shows fighters entering the Kabul airport after the last U.S. troops flew out a minute before midnight and inspecting their new arsenal.
“It is a historical day and a historical moment,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told a news conference at the airport after the departure. “We are proud of these moments, that we liberated our country from a great power.”
The Taliban’s shockingly quick seizure of the country coupled with the West’s hurried departure has resulted in the terrorist group acquiring weaponry and equipment left behind.
U.S. officials have estimated that $83 billion worth of equipment had been invested in the Afghan force, but have not been able to say how much of that has fallen into the hands of Taliban fighters.
Video posted to social media shows the insurgents inspecting long lines of vehicles and opening crates of new firearms, communications gear and even military drones.
“Everything that hasn’t been destroyed is the Taliban’s now,” one U.S. official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told Reuters.
While officials haven’t yet tallied definitive numbers, it is estimated that the Taliban own over 2,000 armoured vehicles, including U.S. Humvees, as well as up to 40 aircraft, potentially including UH-60 Black Hawks, scout attack helicopters and Scaneagle military drones.
L.A. Times foreign correspondent Nabih Bulos reported that the Taliban have also acquired some Afghan air force planes, including A29 Super Tucanos and MD 530s helicopters, some of which appear to be disabled.
In another video posted to Twitter, Bulos records several Taliban fighters dressed in U.S. military gear, entering a once U.s.-controlled hangar to examine a Chinook helicopter abandoned by the U.S.
It’s unclear whether the Taliban have anyone trained to fly the aircraft, officials have said, but concern has risen that the equipment might be used to kill civilians, be seized by Islamic State militants or handed over to political adversaries such as China or Russia.
Gen. Kenneth F. Mckenzie, the head of U.S. Central Command, confirmed to reporters Monday afternoon that more than 150 military vehicles and aircraft had been disabled before leaving Kabul.
“We demilitarized those systems so that they’ll never be used again,” Mckenzie said. “We felt it more important to protect our forces than to bring those systems back.”
Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said the U.S. military was not concerned with the images of Taliban members walking through Kabul airport holding weapons and sizing up U.S. helicopters, telling CNN they could inspect all they wanted but could not fly them.