Taliban Got Hold of a U.S.-Made Super-Surveillance System
This handout image shows A Marine with Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force-Crisis Response-Central Command (SPMAGTF-CR-CC) provides meals ready-to-eat to a child during an evacuation at Hamid Karzai International Airport, August 20, 2021 in Kabul, Afghanistan. U.S. service members are assisting the Department of State with an orderly drawdown of designated personnel in Afghanistan. Sgt. Samuel Ruiz / U.S. Marine Corps via Getty Images

The Taliban has gotten hold of a U.S.-made surveillance system and is now using it. Taliban reportedly utilizing biometric scanners paid for by Americans to track civilians who worked and fought with the U.S.

Reports said that Taliban fighters manning checkpoints in Kabul are using biometric scanners. Daily Beast reported that around 80 percent of the country or about 25 million people were targeted for inclusion in the U.S. military's biometric database.

The Handheld Interagency Identity Detection Equipment can scan Afghan's fingerprints, faces, and irises to reveal biographical information.

The device can also tap into a much bigger national database of information on millions of Afghans that the U.S. collected over two decades of war.

Last week, the Taliban released a propaganda video showing its fighters in full U.S. tactical gear, with Humvees and other American equipment being spotted on the streets of the war-torn country, Independent reported.

One senior member of a Taliban group was seen holding an M4 rifle made by the U.S.

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U.S. Weapons Left in Afghanistan

The Taliban reportedly have taken possession of more than 2,000 armored vehicles and up to 40 aircraft, including helicopters and drones.

Social media images showed fighters armed with everything from M4, M18, M24 sniper, and night vision goggles. One U.S. official said that everything that has not been destroyed is owned by the Taliban now.

Elias Yousif, deputy director of the Center for International Policy's Security Assistance Monitor, said an armed group getting their hands on American-made weaponry is considered a status symbol. Yousif said that it is a "psychological win."

Aside from the stockpile of weaponry from the U.S., the Taliban also seized Russian-made weapons and aircraft.

Yousif said that despite the Taliban getting sophisticated weapons, the group still does not have sufficient knowledge of how to use the systems and weapons.

He added that without long-term maintenance, it would not be a useful military capability.

Taliban Take Over Afghanistan

The militant group was forced to close the Kabul airport if the U.S. extends the deadline further on August 31. The warning came from United Kingdom Defense Secretary Ben Wallace, according to a Business Insider report.

The Taliban also warned that there would be consequences if the U.S. decides to extend the deadline when U.S. troops are set to leave the country.

Wallace noted that not everyone would be able to get out of Afghanistan by August 31. Spain's defense minister also echoed this.

As the deadline nears, the U.S. also tracks particular threats from ISIS against Kabul's airport and against Americans trying to leave Afghanistan.

A defense official said the U.S. military is working on an alternative to bring people safely to the airport. NBC News reported that senior Taliban leaders have also arrived in Kabul to choose a new government and a commander with the militant group.

Reports said Taliban co-founder Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar is likely to become the new president in the next few days.

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Written by: Mary Webber

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