US Government Accidentally Sends $239M in Cash To Taliban After It Abandoned $7 Billion In Military Weapons

Image Credit, Nils Wende

The recent report from the U.S. Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) has exposed a deeply troubling revelation about the U.S. State Department’s handling of funds following the military withdrawal from Afghanistan. It has come to light that since the U.S. forces pulled out of Afghanistan—ending nearly two decades of occupation—the State Department has likely funneled at least $239 million to the Taliban. This money was supposedly distributed through various governmental channels, including the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (DRL), and the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL). However, the proper vetting procedures were evidently bypassed, resulting in a staggering amount of money that cannot be accounted for, with no clear indication of where it ended up.

The context makes this even more appalling. Afghanistan has long been notorious for its abysmal treatment of women and girls, who are relegated to a status barely above non-existence, with their rights systematically violated and their voices silenced. The thought that U.S. taxpayer dollars could have inadvertently empowered the very regime responsible for these atrocities is beyond comprehension. It underscores a catastrophic failure in oversight and accountability, one that cannot be ignored or dismissed.

What further compounds this disgrace is the legacy of military waste left in the wake of the U.S. withdrawal. In 2020, the Department of Defense (DOD) conducted a report revealing that over $7 billion worth of lethal military hardware—Black Hawk helicopters, tanks, armored vehicles, millions of rounds of ammunition, and more than 100,000 pieces of equipment—was abandoned. This arsenal has since been co-opted by the Taliban, who brazenly showcased their newfound military might in a grotesque display of power, parading U.S. weapons and uniforms as symbols of their victory.

This isn’t an isolated incident of fiscal irresponsibility. A separate DOD report last year disclosed that the Pentagon couldn’t account for 63% of nearly $4 trillion in assets. To put that in perspective, this untraceable sum is equivalent to the combined GDP of more than half the countries in the world. Yet, despite this egregious mismanagement, the U.S. continues to pour money into its defense apparatus, with a staggering $1 trillion allocated for the 2023 defense budget alone.

America’s priorities are laid bare in the crumbling infrastructure, the homeless encampments lining city streets, and a healthcare system that leaves millions without adequate care. Meanwhile, funds flow unchecked when it comes to war, with over 800 U.S. military bases scattered across the globe and plans to expand further into the Philippines, Australia, and other parts of Asia. This relentless pursuit of military dominance, at the expense of accountability and human dignity, is the true cost of American imperialism. It is a cost measured not only in dollars but in the erosion of moral integrity and the sacrifice of a nation’s soul.