Rifle Recovered From Terrorists Killed in J&K's Kupwara Could Mean A New Threat Is Lurking. Here's Why

A Steyr AUG rifle, used by militaries across the globe and recovered from two terrorists killed in Kupwara on Thursday, has put the security grid on high alert, with officials worried that weapons and fighters from North-West Frontier Province and Afghanistan have now reached Jammu and Kashmir.

The unusual recovery in Kashmir has also triggered speculations of more such weapons being discovered.

News18 had reported earlier that senior officials in the security grid had warned of Pakistan using Taliban fighters, as well as arms and war equipment left behind by US-led forces in Afghanistan, to disturb Jammu & Kashmir.

The warning seems to be taking the shape of reality in the erstwhile state as per data from the Border Security Force. Numbers show that since 2021, there has been a year-on-year increase in both weapon recoveries and AK-series weapon recoveries, apart from a rise in recovery of IEDs.

The recovery of American-made M4 carbine assault rifles recently in Kathua lends credence to the suspicion of Indian agencies that the weapons, left behind by the US Army after their withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, have finally reached Kashmir.

News18 had reported this week that last year, central Intelligence agencies also received a lead indicating that the logistics, arms, and ammunition used in the Poonch attack, which resulted in the deaths of five RR jawans, came from Taliban-ruled Afghanistan. The local police investigation into the Poonch attack also suspected that the bullets used in the attack were from Afghanistan, left by US forces post their exit.

According to a Defence Department report published last August, more than $7.1 billion in US-funded military equipment was in the possession of the Afghanistan government when it fell to the Taliban in August 2021. Though more than half of it was ground vehicles, the report said, it also included more than 3,16,000 weapons worth almost $512 million, plus ammunition and other accessories.

“At least 78 aircraft worth $923.3 million, 9,524 air-to-ground munitions valued at $6.54 million, over 40,000 vehicles, more than 3,00,000 weapons, and nearly all night vision, surveillance, communications, and biometric equipment provided to the [Afghan defense forces] were left behind,” a report published by Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) in February 2023 said, citing Department of Defense data.

Lieutenant Colonel Emron Musavi, an Indian Army spokesperson in Srinagar, had told NBC News earlier that militants from both groups were sent to Afghanistan to fight alongside or train the Taliban before the US pulled out of the war-torn nation. “It can be safely assumed that they have access to the weapons left behind,” he added.

Ajai Sahni, an author on counterterrorism who serves as executive director of the Institute for Conflict Management, a think tank in New Delhi, says JeM and LeT could be purchasing US weapons from the Taliban in Afghanistan, “where the United Nations says both groups have bases, or through smugglers in Pakistan”, reported NBC News.

Although data compiled by J&K Police shows a significant improvement in controlling terror activities and killing terrorists, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) recently stated in Parliament: “A robust security and Intelligence grid is in place to thwart any attempt of terrorist attacks in Jammu and Kashmir. Further steps taken by the government to prevent terrorist incidents and to safeguard the lives of civilians in the valley include group security in the form of static guards, round-the-clock checking at strategic points, night patrolling and area domination, identification of vulnerable spots, and security arrangements through appropriate deployment of police, army, Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs), and intensified Cordon and Search Operations.”