Pakistani premier claims US military equipment left behind in Afghanistan is now in militant hands

By MUNIR AHMED
Associated Press

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan’s caretaker prime minister claims that U.S. military equipment left behind during the American withdrawal from Afghanistan has fallen into militant hands and ultimately made its way to the Pakistani Taliban. He says the equipment is now “emerging as a new challenge” for Islamabad as it has enhanced the fighting capabilities of the Pakistani Taliban. Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar spoke on Monday to journalists at his office in Islamabad. He did not provide any evidence to support the claim or directly link the Afghan Taliban and the Pakistani Taliban, known also as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP, who have over the past months intensified attacks on Pakistan’s security forces.