A video that has emerged from Afghanistan has shown Taliban fighters flying a $6 million Blackhawk helicopter apparently left behind by retreating US troops over the city of Kandahar.
The video was shared on the official twitter account of the Taliban, which calls itself the Islamic Emirate Afghanistan.
It is worried that the helicopter could easily crash as it is designed to be driven by highly trained aircraftmen who have gone through years of training. It is unlikely anyone in the Taliban has received such training.
The Taliban seized control of Afghanistan last week after the withdrawal of US and NATO troops following a 20-year war which has seen over 100,000 killed and millions of people displaced.
As the Taliban have rapidly advanced through the country, they have seized military equipment left behind by US and NATO forces. Estimates suggest that they could now possess 2000,000 extra firearms, and 20,000 armoured Humvees, as well as 100s of aircraft.
Much of the equipment was given to the official Afghan army by the US and their allies. However, the Afghan army surrendered with little to no resistance once the Americans signalled their intention to leave the country.
US Republican Congressman Jim Banks said of the developments:
"The Taliban now has more Black Hawk helicopters than 85 per cent of the countries in the world. Due to the negligence of this administration, the Taliban now has access to $85billion (£62billion) worth of military equipment. Unbelievably, and unfathomable to me and so many others, the Taliban now has access to biometric devices. This administration still has no plan to get this military equipment or supplies back."
US President Joe Biden has been widely criticised for his handling of the US withdrawal.
In another grisly video, a man appears to be hanged by being thrown out of a helicopter seized by the Taliban.
It is widely feared that the Taliban will carry out punishment killings against any Afghan that assisted the US or NATO forces or the Afghan army and government. Thousands of such individuals fled to the main airport in the Afghan capital Kabul in order to get onboard evacuation flights.
[h/t: Daily Mail]
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