M4 Carbines which fell into Taliban’s hands post US pull-out make their way to J&K

The M4 Carbine assault rifle was the popular weapons of choice for the US forces during the war in Afghanistan. However following a hasty pull-out nearly $7 billion worth of military equipment fell into the hands of the Taliban

New Delhi, Jan 31: Terrorists backed by Pakistan have been using the M4 carbine assault rifles in Jammu and Kashmir, thus suggesting that the weapons that fell into the hands of the Taliban following the hasty US pullover have made its way to the Valley.

The sizers of the weapons show that the terrorists of the Jaish-e-Mohammad and Lashkar-e-Tayiba have been using the M4 Carbines in the Valley. Since the US had pulled out of Afghanistan, there have been multiple reports which suggested that the weapons left behind had fallen into the hands of the Taliban. Many from the Valley had been sent to Afghanistan to fight and train alongside the Taliban. It can be safely assumed that they have access to the weapons left behind, Lt. Colonel Enron Musavi, the Indian Army's spokesperson in Srinagar told NBC News.

Last year in July, the Kashmir Zone Police in a tweet had said that following an encounter in Awantipora, terrorist Kaiser Koka had been killed. The police also said that during the seizures the forces recovered incriminating material which included arms, ammunition. One USA made M-4 Carbine rifle was seized along with a pistol, the police had also said.

On February 19 2022, Major General Ajay Chandpuria had said the weapons and devices recovered from the terrorists killed at the Line of Control (LoC)were not commonly seen. These were in Afghanistan when the US troops withdrew. He further said that no just terrorists, even the weapons came to Kashmir.

Lt. Gov Manoj Sinha of Jammu and Kashmir had said that they were aware of this and measures are being taken to stop the infiltration of the US weaponry in the Union Territory.

A Defence Department report that was published in August 2022 had pointed out that around $7 billion in military equipment which was supplied to the Afghanistan government was left behind in the country, following the rushed withdrawal by the US in August 2021.

India too had raised concerns that the weapons may make their way into Pakistan and later on into J&K through the terrorists sponsored by Pakistan.

What is the M4 Carbine assault rifle:

The M4 Carbine is widely used by the US military. A shortened version of the M16A2 rifle, it is more compact and has a shorter range. However it is still capable of firing the same 5.56x45 mm NATO rounds.

The M4 has become a standard issue infantry weapon as it is very versatile and adaptable.

The M4 was widely used by the US in Afghanistan since the war began in 2001. It was the perfect choice weapon for the troops who operated in the mountainous terrains in Afghanistan. Another reason for the same was because the weapon is easy to manoeuvre. Due to its small size was also suited for close quarter combats in the urban environment.