U.S. Military Equipment Was Seized, Not Abandoned
The Claim
United States military equipment was abandoned during withdrawal from Afghanistan.
News posted on
Emerging story
During the US’s withdrawal from Afghanistan, the media has reported that a large amount of U.S. equipment — including helicopters and planes — has ended up in the Taliban’s hands. Some people insinuate that this is because the U.S. military simply left them lying around or abandoned.
As a result, some blamed President Biden for not destroying or moving the equipment elsewhere.
Misbar’s Analysis
MENA: This claim is an oversimplification.
The equipment in question was given to the Afghan military to use to defend themselves during the Taliban offensive expected to occur during U.S. withdrawal.
Due to many reasons, the Afghan military collapsed surprisingly fast, with relatively little combat. A large portion of the military surrendered their equipment to the Taliban.
Since the equipment was provided by the U.S. military but purposely left with the Afghan army, the claim that the equipment was abandoned is misleading.
