Senators demand Defense Department audit.
Billions of dollars of American weapons and vehicles are said to be in the hands of the Taliban after that group’s takeover of Afghanistan. Equipment that was supplied to the Afghan security forces has been seized by the Taliban, and the U.S. does not know exactly how much American gear has made its way into terrorist hands.
White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said, “We don’t have a complete picture, obviously, of everywhere every article of defense materials has gone but certainly a fair amount of it has fallen into the hands of the Taliban. Obviously, we don’t have a sense that they are going to readily hand it over to us at the airport.”
Taliban fighters in Kabul have already been seen with rifles, sniper rifle systems, machine guns, night-vision goggles, radios, Humvees, and other vehicles. Black Hawk helicopters and drones are next.
On Friday, Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby said, “We are always worried about U.S. equipment that could fall into an adversary’s hands. What actions we might take to prevent that or to forestall it, I just simply won’t speculate about today.”
Some in the Senate, including Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, are calling for the Department of Defense to conduct an audit of equipment left behind that has been seized by the Taliban.
As the Lord Leads, Pray with Us…
- For leaders at the Pentagon and in the administration as they continue to face the situation on the ground in Afghanistan.
- For military personnel working to retrieve Americans stuck in that nation.
- For members of Congress as they seek an inventory of the lost valuable mechanical and high-tech military equipment.
- For the people in Aghanistan who are being persecuted by Islamic extremists.
Sources: Epoch Times, Reuters
