Oh, how very brave!

[Workingman]

Not allied troops - though they are.

It's the other lot. Dressed as locals, because they are locals, these boys drive or walk among innocent and unarmed children, women and men.... then blow them up.

That's Afghanistan and IS.

The supporters of these despicable bastards (sorry) are amongst us here in the UK, US, France and other places. They are not Taliban. The Taliban just want to establish an Islamic Emirate in Afghanistan and they hate them as much as we do - they, the Taliban, are not International terrorist in the way Al-Qaeda and IS are.

So what do we do? Work with our former enemies, the Taliban, to help them eradicate IS And Al-Q in Afghanistan, or obliterate IS and Al-Q here at home by whatever means?

We are too soft to do the second, so......

[cromwell]

No UK politicians is brave enough to take either decision, imo.

What has staggered me is the amount of weaponry that the US has left behind in Afghanistan. All of which is in the hands of the Taliban now.
Hundreds of aircraft, helicopters (including Black Hawk helicopters), armoured vehicles, medical supplies, night vision goggles, body armour and more than half a million small arms.

It doesn't take a military genius to work out what would happen when the US pulled out. I know most of this will have been taken from the Afghan army, but honestly.
The Taliban only have 60,000 fighters max - they have virtually ten guns each now!

[Workingman]

What has staggered me is the amount of weaponry that the US has left behind in Afghanistan. All of which is in the hands of the Taliban now.

And us. There were photos a few weeks back of Bagram after the start of the pull out and the amount of hardware left behind was staggering. This had been accumulated over 20 years and it would take months of multiple daily flights to ship it all back out. No force has the wherewithal to do that so it is dumped. Oh, and nowhere local, secure or big enough to put it.

[victor]

Surely some/most if not all could have been rendered unusable

[cromwell]

Exactly Vic!
At least some of it should have been. If the Afghan army was 300,000 strong (and it wasn't) why 600,000 small arms?
Apparently Bagram airbase was abandoned by the US during the night without informing the Afghan army, and they left tons of gear behind them.

[cromwell]

Now some US politician is calling for air strikes to destroy all the weapons and equipment that was left behind.
He might as well make a new bolt for the stable door...

[Kaz]

I've seen photos of the Taliban all togged up with US battle gear, and weapons! It's simply unforgivable - a massive PR coup as much as anything

[Workingman]

These things happen in conflicts - always have and always will.

It takes months or even years to supply an army and if that army has to retreat in quick order to save its troops that is what it will do. The ordnance and supplies get left behind, and for the military that is an acceptable loss. We might not like it, but it is what it is.

I agree that some of it could probably have been destroyed, rendered useless or booby trapped, but that would have been a decision commanders would have made - in the moment - in the face of the threat.

It is like being in a building when a fire starts. You are told to get out as quickly as possible by the nearest exit - no packing bags, laptops, going to the cloakroom for a coat or the fridge for your lunch box - you get out!

[Suff]

Piss poor planning.

The writing was already on the wall but the Afghan army didn't want to read it.

The Taliban will get the weapons but laying your hands on NATO ammunition is not so easy. When they have burned through all that, the weapons will be no more than high grade steel to be melted down.

The sad part is that the lesson will not be learned for the future because they totally lost and those who learned the lesson will not be there next time, if there is ever a next time.