According to the official in charge of coordinating the military’s transformation, the Taliban are forming a “great army” for Afghanistan that will comprise officers and warriors who previously served under the old regime. The head of the Taliban’s Ranks Clearance Commission, Latifullah Hakimi, also told a news conference that half of the 81 helicopters and planes allegedly rendered unserviceable by US-led forces during last year’s chaotic evacuation had been repaired.
Taliban has grabbed the control of Afghan Army
During their quick takeover of the country, he said, Taliban fighters grabbed control of more than 3,00,000 light weapons, 26,000 heavy weapons, and roughly 61,000 military vehicles. Last summer, Afghanistan’s military forces collapsed in the face of a Taliban onslaught, fleeing their posts and leaving behind all of their weapons and equipment as the US-led army pullout approached on August 31.
Although the Taliban have pledged a general amnesty to anybody associated with the previous regime, nearly all key government and military officials were among the more than 120,000 people who flew out in the closing days.
Many of the rank and file, on the other hand, reintegrated into civilian life and kept a low profile for fear of retaliation. Since August, more than 100 persons affiliated to the old military forces have been slain, according to the United Nations. Mr. Hakimi, on the other hand, claimed that the Taliban amnesty had been a success. “We would have observed a really horrible situation if it hadn’t been given,” he said. “The same suicide bombers who were hunting a person to target him are now protecting him,” he continued.
Although there is no evidence that the Taliban has absorbed the former military into its ranks, they did name two senior ex-Afghan National Army officers to key positions in the defense ministry over the weekend. Both are surgeons who work at the country’s primary military hospital. Mr. Hakimi stated, “Our work on the formation of an army is ongoing.” “In the security sector, professionals such as pilots and engineers, service members, logistical and administrative workers (from the previous government) remain in their places.”
Mr. Hakimi stated that they will establish “a magnificent army… in accordance with the necessities and national interests of the country,” but he did not specify a size. He stated that the army would be limited to that which the country could afford. Afghanistan, on the other hand, is practically insolvent, with the US seizing the country’s $7 billion in abroad assets.
Half of the money would be set aside for a fund to recompense 9/11 victims, while the other half will be released over time as part of a closely controlled humanitarian aid fund, according to Washington. Mr. Hakimi said during the news conference that the Taliban had expelled roughly 4,500 “unwanted persons” from its ranks, most of whom were new recruits who had joined after the Taliban’s control and were responsible for a rash of crimes.