House Republicans Will Introduce Bill to Require Biden Administration to Detail the Amount of US Weapons Seized by Afghan Taliban

Taliban fighters and local residents sit on an U.S. provided Afghan National Army Humvee vehicle along the roadside in Laghman province on Aug. 15, 2021. AFP via Getty Images

House Armed Services Committee Republicans told the Daily Caller News Foundation that they are planning to introduce a bill that would force the Biden administration to tell them how much U.S. military equipment was seized by the Taliban.

The GOP lawmakers said they would introduce the bill in September, during the full committee markup of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).

Earlier this week, the Associated Press reported that the Taliban took control of billions of dollars in U.S. military equipment and weapons after the sudden surrender of the U.S.-trained Afghan military. This all happened in the wake of President Joe Biden ordering all troops out of Afghanistan.

“The Biden–Harris administration has failed to provide an accounting of U.S. equipment now in the hands of the Taliban,” Armed Services Ranking Member Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) said in a statement to the Daily Caller. “Republican Members on the Armed Services Committee demand to know this information and we plan to offer legislation at our markup to require the Biden–Harris administration to detail what they have lost to the Taliban.”

The Epoch Times did not immediately get a response from Rep. Roger’s office on details about the upcoming legislation.

Photos and video footage over the past week showed large caches of weapons, including M-16 rifles and Humvees, being commandeered by the Taliban, considered by some governments to be a terrorist organization. Taliban members were seen holding American-made M-4 carbines and M-16 rifles that were discarded by Afghan military units.

When asked about the captured military equipment and weapons and whether American forces are attempting to prevent them from falling into the hands of the group, Maj. Gen. Hank Taylor responded: “I don’t have the answer to that question.”

The Associated Press reported that the Taliban captured an array of modern military equipment when they overran Afghan forces who failed to defend district centers. Bigger gains followed, including combat aircraft, when the Taliban seized provincial capitals and military bases with stunning speed, topped by capturing the biggest prize, Kabul, over the weekend.

A U.S. defense official on Monday confirmed the Taliban’s sudden accumulation of U.S.-supplied Afghan equipment is enormous. The official was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and so spoke on condition of anonymity.

Besides the billions of dollars in weapons and military equipment, Republicans are pressing the Biden administration to reveal how they plan to get American citizens and allies out of Afghanistan.

Biden said that the U.S. forces are working to get the approximately 15,000 Americans out of Afghanistan but did not articulate the details of the administration’s plan to do so.

U.S. House and Senate Republicans are demanding that Biden share his plan with top congressional leaders of how the United States will bring Americans back from Afghanistan.

“It is of the utmost importance that the U.S. Government account for all U.S. citizens in Afghanistan and provide the necessary information and means of departure to all those Americans who desire to leave the country,” the GOP leaders wrote.

The Epoch Times reached out to the Department of Defense.

Jack Phillips and AP contributed to this report.

Correction: A previous version of this story misstated the state Rep. Rogers represents. It is Alabama. The Epoch Times regrets the error.