US weapons left in Afghanistan sold to militant groups: BBC report

Weapons left by the United States (US) in Afghanistan were ‘sold’ to militant groups by Afghan Taliban, claimed BBC in its report.

According to details shared in a report compiled by BBC, about half a million weapons obtained by the Taliban in Afghanistan have been lost, sold or smuggled to militant groups – with the UN believing that some have fallen into the hands of Al-Qaeda affiliates.

“The Taliban took control of around one million weapons and pieces of military equipment – which had mostly been funded by the US – when it regained control of Afghanistan in 2021,” according to a former Afghan official who spoke to the BBC anonymously.

The cache included American-made firearms, such as M4 and M16 rifles, as well as other older weapons in Afghan possession that had been left behind from decades of conflict.

BBC report further claimed that at the closed-door UN Security Council’s Sanctions Committee in Doha late last year, the Taliban admitted that at least half of this equipment is now “unaccounted” for.

Read more: US-made weapons used in Jaffar Express attack: Washington Post

On Monday, The Washington Post in one of its report said that the US-made weapons were used in Jaffar Express attack.

The attack took place on March 11, when the Peshawar-bound Jaffar Express — carrying 440 passengers — was ambushed. Several hostages were taken during the assault, prompting a two-day security operation to neutralize the threat and rescue the captives.

Weapons were left behind by United States forces following their 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan. Among the weapons recovered from the scene was an M4A1 carbine rifle manufactured by Colt, an American arms maker.