Democrat, Liberal, Guns, Incompetence, Oops, War, Terrorism, Biden

The Taliban takeover may have plunged Afghanistan into uncertainty and economic pain, but arms dealer Khan Mohammad is making the most of it.

  Sandwiched between a pharmacy and a general store, his shop in the Panjwai district of southern Kandahar province -- the spiritual birthplace of the Taliban -- is flush with fresh inventory.

  Camouflage combat vests and bandoliers hung from the walls as Mohammed showed off his wares, including US-made Smith & Wesson pistols and ammunition belts...

  Another dealer in the dusty Panjwai market, whose shop was adorned with large Taliban flags and pictures of the group's top leaders, had more potent offerings. They included assault rifles -- variants of the AK-47 as well as the US-made M4 and M16 -- and even light machine guns.

  The Taliban for years procured weapons and ammunition from the black market. They also captured arms and equipment from the battlefield and abandoned military posts, according to UN and Western monitors.

Democrat, Liberal, Government, Incompetence, AntiAmerican, War, Waste, Terrorism, Biden

The Taliban have seized an air force worth tens of millions of pounds, including US-bought helicopters and attack planes, giving them more aerial firepower than many Nato members.

  Over the last few months, the jihadists have captured 10 major airfields from Bagram to Mazar-i-Sharif, and today took to the skies in a $6 million Black Hawk helicopter in their fight against the resistance in the Panjshir Valley...

  Photos showed propellers and guns removed from planes and helicopters, while other aircraft lay with their fuselages directly on the tarmac, having had their wheels stripped away rendering them inoperable.

  That leaves as many as 48 aircraft seized by the Taliban, although it is unclear what the breakdown is in terms of planes and helicopters, or what condition these aircraft might be in. Many were built in the 1980s and will need constant servicing and parts to make sure they are airworthy, let alone capable of combat... it gives them more air power than 10 of the 30 Nato members, namely: Albania, Bosnia, Estonia, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Slovenia.

Democrat, Liberal, Violence, Government, Guns, Incompetence, Scandal, Brilliance, Oops, Waste, Theft, Biden

According to an admission obtained from the State Department, Biden officials recently directed federal agencies to scrub their websites of official reports detailing the $82.9 billion in military equipment and training provided to the Afghan security forces since 2001.

  The scrubbed audits and reports included detailed accounting of what the U.S. had provided to Afghan forces, down to the number of night vision devices, hand grenades, Black Hawk helicopters, and armored vehicles.

  Reports further quantified 208 aircraft and helicopters; 75,000 war vehicles – including 22 Humvees, 50,000 tactical vehicles and nearly 1,000 mine resistant vehicles; and 600,000 weapons – including 350,000 M4 and M16 rifles, 60,000 machine guns, and 25,000 grenade launchers.

Democrat, Liberal, Violence, Government, Guns, Incompetence, Scandal, Brilliance, Oops, Waste, Theft, Biden

National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said Tuesday that a "fair amount" of U.S. weaponry had fallen into the hands of the Taliban since the hard-line Islamic militant group's rapid takeover Afghanistan in recent days.

  During a White House press briefing, Sullivan was ask what will happen with the billions of dollars in equipment, including guns, ammunition, helicopters, and more, given to the Afghanistan government in the two decades before its collapse.

  "We don't have a complete picture, obviously, of where every article of defense materials has gone," the Biden adviser answered briefly. "But certainly, a fair amount of it has fallen into the hands of the Taliban, and, obviously, we don’t have a sense that they are going to readily hand it over to us at the airport."

Democrat, Liberal, Government, Guns, Incompetence, War, Waste, Biden

The Taliban’s media wing has wasted little time releasing droves of new propaganda in the wake of its ascension to power.

  In one particular image released this week, members of the Taliban’s Badri 313 Battalion appear to mock Joe Rosenthal’s iconic 1945 image of the flag raising atop Mount Suribachi during the Battle of Iwo Jima.

  In the Taliban image, fighters belonging to the Badri 313, which some are calling the Taliban’s elite commando unit, are shown wearing full camouflage uniforms, combat boots, tactical gear and night vision goggles.

  Similar photographs released in recent days show Taliban fighters carrying weapons and equipment issued by the United States or allied nations, including M4 carbines and what appear to be Trijicon advanced combat optical gunsights, or ACOGs.

Democrat, Liberal, Government, Guns, Incompetence, Oops, War, Waste, Biden

WASHINGTON, Aug 19 (Reuters) - About a month ago, Afghanistan's ministry of defense posted on social media photographs of seven brand new helicopters arriving in Kabul delivered by the United States.

  "They'll continue to see a steady drumbeat of that kind of support, going forward," U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told reporters a few days later at the Pentagon.

  In a matter of weeks, however, the Taliban had seized most of the country, as well as any weapons and equipment left behind by fleeing Afghan forces.