Afghanistan's green trend exposes 100,000 'ghost soldiers' in Taliban forces

Led by Amrullah Saleh, Afghanistan's former vice president, Afghanistan's Green Trend (AGT) has uncovered significant discrepancies in the Taliban's military cadre and highlighted the proliferation of “ghost soldiers” within their ranks.

AGT's latest publication shows that of the reported 173,000 soldiers in the Taliban forces, about 100,000 are considered ghost soldiers. These ghost members are fictitious entities whose names appear in official records to illegally demand additional benefits such as salaries and food supplies, a practice rooted in systemic corruption.

This analysis was shared on the social network , while in others it drops to forty percent.”

Further evidence suggests that the actual active operational strength of these forces is only forty percent of the figures given. The total documented strength of the Taliban army in various divisions is 173,724 men.

The report also addresses the inappropriate privileges granted to certain Taliban personnel based on their tribal affiliation, even though they did not exist locally. This practice is reportedly more common in northern Afghanistan, where the Taliban are struggling for social support.

In addition, AGT's intelligence unit accessed employment records of over 50,000 Taliban Defense Department personnel and found that approximately 93 percent are from the Pashtun ethnic group.