After the unceremonious fall of Kabul there have been numerous reports of Taliban Special Forces units patrolling in Kabul. Casting aside the traditional Afghan Taliban look of ‘shalwar kameez,’ they can always be seen dressed in tactical outfits ready for deployment at a moment’s notice. Carrying US-made M4 rifles, US-style night vision devices, body armour, tactical kneepads, and tactical radios, they are capable of achieving an objective with relative ease.
However, the question then arises: how was the Taliban able to fund such a highly advanced group of soldiers? The Taliban are not just some rag-tag group of rebels. They are among some of the wealthiest and most powerful in the world. Their annual income is estimated to be around $1.5 billion. According to reports from the UN and NATO, the chief contributors are drug trafficking and opium production, kidnapping and ransom, tax collection, and donations.
According to the UN, the revenue generated from opium production in 2020 was estimated to be around $460 million. The US itself spent $8 billion to try and stop it but knowing the US’s history with drugs, especially opium, their true motivation is highly suspect. According to a report by the CIA in 2008, the Taliban received $106 million in donations, mostly from the Gulf States.
They have been trained for special operations such as assault and house storming with complete tactical precision, which could be the primary reason for the ‘Bloodless capture of Kabul.’
These units have been laced with the latest arms and defence equipment. They are very different from the traditional set-up of militant groups. And it is evident that the Taliban got the equipment for the battalion ~ state-of-the-art US military hardware, weapons and the same military equipment used by Afghan forces – from the departing US Army. It is still a mystery as to who trained them. The Badri 313 Battalion is currently an elite military unit of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. The group takes its name from the Battle of Badr, which happened on 13 March 624, when the Prophet Muhammad led a victorious battle with 313 men. Elite Taliban units have been reported as being “critical in the taking over of Afghanistan”. The Taliban also has another elite unit known as the Red Unit.
These troops are ideologically closely aligned with al-Qaeda. Units termed “Army of Badr” first carried out suicide attacks and raids on positions associated with the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and its allies in 2011, reported the Long War Journal. The Badri 313 Battalion already took part in an attack on G4S’s Kabul compound in November 2018.
After Kabul was captured by the Taliban in 2021, the Taliban reported that Badri 313 Battalion were securing the presidential palace, the Arg and other important sites in the city. It was reported to be providing “security” at Kabul Airport. On Twitter they were mocked for showing off their CIA training ~ their index fingers were typically not on the rifle triggers.
The unit has previously featured in promotional materials distributed by the Taliban, showing them to be equipped with state-of-the-art military equipment.
In July and August 2021, the Taliban released propaganda on Badri 313 Battalion in local languages, as well as in English and Arabic Videos released by the group show Badri 313 soldiers wearing US military night-vision gear, bulletproof jackets in camouflage clothing and modern American rifles and driving around in Humvees.
In fact, the Taliban unit appears to be equipped so well that it is difficult to distinguish between them and special combat units of other countries. According to the British newspaper The Daily Mail, there are now reports that the unit has been patrolling the streets of Kabul since the Taliban took control of the city this month.
The Taliban now boasts a large cache of attack and intelligence aircraft, including 22 EMB-314 Super Tucano light-attack aircraft which are equipped with GBU-58 Paveway II laser-guided bombing systems. They have access to “attack helicopters and precision-guided munitions”. They have captured six MI-24 heavy attack helicopters apparently gifted to the Afghan Air Force by India in 2019. These formidable gunships are capable of fearsome, low-level attack in ground fire conditions. It is a cause for grave concern that 11 American MD-530F light-armed helicopters designed for rapid, low-level attack missions and for special operations are now in their hands. That is in addition to 35 US Black Hawk helicopters, 76 Russian MI-17 utility helicopters, 5, Cessna Combat Caravan airplanes, and 12 Pilatus PC-12 aircraft ~ used for intelligence gathering and rapid transport. However, they do not have trained pilots and maintenance staff for the attack helicopters for which they may depend upon Pakistan and China.
The biggest aircraft the Taliban now have access to is the C-130 Hercules. This is an aircraft that is used by the Indian Air Force, the American Air Force, and modern air forces across the world. They are capable of special operations even from unprepared runways. They are hugely flexible for a number of military transport operations including Special Forces operations. If the Taliban can get them off the ground, imagine what this means for the region.
Reports say that the Taliban’s special commandos played a key role in the Afghan offensive and are now responsible for the security of Kabul where they can be seen deployed at all key locations. Gilles Dorronsoro, who is a specialist on Afghanistan at the Sorbonne University in Paris, said these commandos are part of a larger trend. “We’ve seen a remarkable professionalisation of the Taliban since the middle of the 2000s,” he said. Badri 313 is playing a very important role in the attack of Panjshir against the National Resistant Front of Amanullah Saleh and Ahmad Massoud.