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Threat Matrix: US officials estimate Taliban strength at a minimum of 60,000 fighters
NBC News reports that US and Afghan officials estimate the Taliban’s strength in Afghanistan to be a minimum of 60,000 fighters. This updated figure is significant, because as the report notes, for years the only previous estimate was approximately 20,000:
In 2014, US officials told NBC News that the number of Taliban fighters in Afghanistan was about 20,000. Four years later, one US defense official said the current Taliban strength is at least 60,000. Another senior U.S. official said 60,000 “passes the sniff test,” while a third official said 60,000 is “a place to start.”
An Afghan official told NBC News earlier this month that the Afghan estimate of Taliban strength is also 60,000. That marks a significant increase from the estimate of 35,000 that Afghanistan’s TOLOnews attributed to an Afghan defense official in 2011.
Given all of the information available to FDD’s Long War Journal, I believe this latest assessment to significantly more accurate. I am quoted in the above-referenced article that 60,000 would be my low-end estimate. In fact, with the amount of territory up for grabs and fighting taking place, that number could easily be doubled.
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More News On Reports That The Taliban Are Threatening 70% of Afghanistan With A Minimum Of 60,000 Fighters
The Taliban is gaining strength and territory in Afghanistan -- NBC
Taliban control of Afghanistan on the rise, US data reveals -- CNN
Taliban threaten 70% of Afghanistan, BBC finds -- BBC
Alarmingly High Percentage of Taliban Affected Areas in Afghanistan: BBC -- Eurasian Times
