World2 min(s) read
Published 14:43 02 Sep 2021 GMT
The Taliban are said to be "angry" that US forces left aircraft and other equipment in a state of disrepair before leaving the country following a 20-year military presence.
Just hours after the final US troops left Kabul on Monday, August 30, the Taliban held a self-congratulatory press conference from Hamid Karzai International Airport.
The overjoyed militant group also celebrated the occasion by arranging a spectacle that saw gunfire erupt into the night sky.
However, their jubilation was short-lived, and, indeed, once they saw that the foreign forces had left behind inoperable aircraft at the airport, they were said to feel "betrayed".
Charlotte Bellis, a reporter for Al Jazeera, noted that when the US troops vacated Kabul airport, the mood amongst members of the Taliban "was one of joy, celebration".
She said: "They were shooting in the sky. There were fireworks. They were very happy that the Americans had left."
However, the atmosphere, days after the full withdrawal of American forces, is now "quite different."
Bellis continued: "[The Taliban] are disappointed. They are angry. They say they feel betrayed because all of this equipment is broken beyond repair."
As reported by CBS News, the commander of the US evacuation mission, Gen. Frank McKenzie confirmed that the US forces destroyed 73 aircraft before their departure this week.
"Those aircraft will never fly again," McKenzie said, according to the outlet. "They'll never be able to be operated by anyone. Most of them were non-mission capable, to begin with, but certainly, they'll never be able to be flown again."
Per Daily Mail, the US forces reportedly left around 48 aircraft with the terrorist organization, however, it is not known how many of these were operable.
According to Bellis, the Taliban "say that they expected the Americans to leave helicopters in one piece for their use."
The journalist added: "When I said to them, 'Why do you think that the Americans would have left everything operational for you?', they said, 'Because we believe it is a national asset and we're the government now and this could have come to great use for us.
"So they are very disappointed that a lot of this equipment cannot be used any longer."
