A recent report by the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) – which monitors and tracks global jihadist communications via open source intelligence collection methods – has detailed that last year the Taliban threatened the Biden administration with “a battalion of suicide bombers” sent to Washington D.C.
According to the MEMRI report, “In December 2021, it also emerged that the Islamic Emirate told the United States during talks in Doha that if the U.S. insisted on deploying 2,000 American troops at its embassy in Kabul, the Taliban would also deploy as part of any bilateral arrangement 2,000 fidayeen mujahideen [i.e., suicide bombers] at the Afghan Embassy in Washington D.C.”
Bloomberg this week confirmed ongoing Taliban efforts to specifically recruit suicide bombers to be incorporated into its national army. “The Taliban will officially recruit suicide bombers to become part of the army as the militant group tries to contain its biggest security threat from rival Islamic State since forming government in Afghanistan four months ago,” the report detailed as the Taliban continues to battle Islamist rivals in some locales.
And more via Bloomberg:
“The special forces that include martyrdom seekers will be used for more sophisticated and special operations,” Karimi said by phone, without providing details.
The militant group is building a “strong and organized army to bolster defense” nationwide and at the borders with the suicide bombers becoming a integral part of the strategy, Karimi added. Some 150,000 fighters will be invited to join the military, Al Jazeera reported in November, citing the Taliban’s chief of staff Qari Fasihuddin.
