313 Badri Brigade - An Elite Taliban Force

From a distance these men on patrol look like NATO soldiers wearing American tactical gear but if you look closer you'll see that these fighters are from the other side of Afghanistan's combat. This is the Taliban's elite Badri 313 brigade.

313 Badri Brigade

It was founded by Badrudin Haqqani who was killed in a US drone strike in 2012. He was the son of Taliban co-founder Jalaluddin Haqqani. Now this unit is facing off against American soldiers at Kabul's airport wearing the same kit the Americans are leaving behind.

Badri Force At Kabul Airport

The Taliban says Badri 313 is the future of a group whose fighters have looked like this since the Taliban first emerged in 1994. If you're wondering why these Taliban fighters don't look like an average Taliban fighter, well it's because of a concerted effort by the Taliban leadership to unite disparate Taliban groups into one unified fighting force. As they have their own country and now they need an army.

Saeed is an officer in Badri 313. He has command on five languages and is a new type of Taliban fighter. “First thing you have to be a modern Mustachit seeker. You know a Mustachit we say Mustachit and the foreigner says the society attackers. You need to be a martyrdom seeker, Mustachit, to be for a member of Badri unit. It is important. All of the members of this unit are the martyrdom seekers. We want to be murdered in the way of ALLAH and we the value of us is to save our country, to save our people and to save our awareness and in that way we are ready to lay our lives for ALLAH’s cause.”

Now you will be wondering that aren't all Taliban martyrdom seekers or fidayin? The answer is, actually all of them are like that but as an organized unit, it is specified for that mission. Saeed has lost his brother and he is actually ready to lose himself as well but he has values. He would defend his values which are more important for him than his life.

The unit has an estimated 5,000 fighters who go through arduous training in built-up warfare and how to conduct suicide attacks. Some scholars say that suicide attacks are non-Islamic. However, the Taliban has a council of religious leaders that decides on such matters including seeking martyrdom. Before they do anything, they consult with the religious leaders to sanction such attacks.

Badri 313 On Training

Regardless of what they wear and how they look; these men are still the Taliban, committed to establishing Islamic law in Afghanistan and with the Americans left these fighters, might find their mission changing from seeking martyrdom to ensuring safety security and peace for the loved ones.