Pakistan’s military spokesperson, Major General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, said on Friday that weapons left behind by the United States after its withdrawal from Afghanistan have fallen into the hands of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants.

Speaking at a press conference in Peshawar, Chaudhry said the army had seized a number of American-made weapons during recent operations against militants. He noted that military assessments indicate more than US$7 billion worth of weapons were abandoned in Afghanistan, many of which are now being used by the TTP.

“Militants are using American weapons, and our forces have captured them during operations,” he said.
Chaudhry added that more than 3,000 militant attacks have occurred in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province over the past three months, criticising the provincial governments of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan for failing to maintain security.

Referring to Afghanistan, he warned that “space for those supporting terrorists is shrinking” and urged that sponsors and facilitators of terrorism “end their policies and hand over the terrorists to Pakistan.”