Nearly half of the weaponry and military equipment seized by the Afghan Taliban during the 2021 withdrawal of United States forces has either been lost, smuggled, or sold to militant groups across South Asia, reports from multiple sources have revealed.
The claims follow an investigation by a leading US publication which found that militants and terrorist groups operating in the region are increasingly using American-made arms and ammunition in their assaults.
Weapons reportedly left behind include NATO-standard M4 and M16 assault rifles, along with older arms abandoned by the Afghan National Army and US forces—remnants of decades of warfare in the region.
The matter was raised at a closed-door session of the UN Security Council’s Sanctions Committee in Doha last year. During the discussions, the Afghan Taliban is reported to have admitted that at least half of the military hardware in their possession was “unaccounted for”.
A committee source claimed that verification from multiple channels confirmed the disappearance of close to half a million pieces of equipment. However, the Taliban government denied the allegation.
Hamdullah Fitrat, deputy spokesperson for the Taliban administration, told reporters: “All light and heavy weapons are securely stored. We strongly reject claims of smuggling or loss.”
He added, “They took the protection and storage of weapons very seriously.”
Despite such denials, reports indicate that after the Taliban’s return to power in 2021, an open arms bazaar flourished across parts of Afghanistan for more than a year. Although such markets are no longer operating publicly, they have reportedly gone underground, with sales now conducted on encrypted online platforms such as WhatsApp.
Analysts say that this black-market proliferation of arms, stemming from the US withdrawal, poses a severe strategic threat to countries in South Asia plagued by militancy—among them India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan itself, and Iran.
The Islamic State-Khorasan (ISKP) has also reportedly gained ground amidst this vacuum, threatening regional stability in the same manner it did across parts of Southwest Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa.
While security forces in Kashmir, Pakistan’s Balochistan, and Iran’s Sistan and Balochistan have intercepted US-manufactured rifles fitted with night-vision and laser aiming devices, the Taliban government is believed to retain most of the medium-range weapons, small arms, and military vehicles like Humvees.
In response to the situation, US President Donald Trump reiterated his criticism of the 2021 withdrawal, blaming it for the massive loss of American military assets.
“Afghanistan is one of the biggest sellers of military equipment in the world. You know why? They’re selling the equipment that we left,” Trump said during his first cabinet meeting since returning to office, adding that $85 billion worth of advanced weaponry had been abandoned.
Taliban chief spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid rejected Trump’s assertions, stating: “We seized these weapons from the previous administration and will use them to defend the country and counter any threats.”
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