Taliban death brigade: Badri 313 completely different from movement’s elements

The Badri 313 brigade is one of the most important within the Taliban, as it has the largest media aura within the movement, and in the folds of its image, it is completely different from the image of the traditional movement of elements in turbans sitting in trucks.

Death brigade

Pictures published by the Taliban on social networks some time ago showed a group of armed men fully equipped with military weapons, helmets, flak jackets, masks, backpacks and night vision goggles.

Name’s origin

The members of the Badri 313 joined the ranks of other special forces under the control of the Taliban in the country, and the brigade’s name was taken from the Battle of Badr 1,400 years ago.

“Even if it's not at the level of Western special forces, not even those in India or neighboring Pakistan, their personnel are 'more effective' than the traditional Taliban,” a weapons expert, Caliber Obscura, said on Twitter.

“They were used during the campaign against ISIS between 2017 and 2020,” he told AFP, adding, “Historically, they intervene against fierce enemies.”

According to Caliber Obscura, as well as the magazine Jane’s, which specializes in the field of weapons, the brigade’s numbers are estimated at a few thousand at most.

Badri 313 has “probably some of the best-trained and equipped” militants in Afghanistan, said Matt Henman, head of Jane’s Terrorism and Insurgency Center (JTIC), adding, “We can expect a little excitement in the publicity it gets.”

“But there is a high possibility that Pakistan has provided it with some kind of training,” Henman continued.

Military activity

The members of Badri 313, which symbolizes military knowledge that the Taliban did not have at the time, proved “effective on the battlefield,” according to Bill Roggio, editor-in-chief of the Long War Journal.

“During the last attack since May 2021, we were able to verify that the Taliban's special forces were instrumental in the takeover of Afghanistan,” Roggio said.

As is so often the case in such a situation, the victorious insurgency plundered weapons from its opponents' arsenals - in this case from the Afghan National Army, which in turn is supplied by the US Army.

Roggio noted that “the United States is therefore supplying the Taliban with equipment.”

A few days ago, the brigade was responsible for security in the vicinity of Kabul Airport, in cooperation with the American forces that still control its runway.

It even defied the Americans by publishing a picture of soldiers waving the Taliban flag, in a famous shot almost similar to US soldiers at the Battle of Iwo Jima in Japan during World War II.

Political interests

The Badri 313 also serves political interests. It is closely linked to the influential Haqqani Network within the Taliban, and two of its representatives are participating in discussions about the new government in Kabul.

According to Roggio, the brigade thus “combines the Taliban's military training for years with the Haqqani Network's efforts to professionalize the Afghan military.”

Therefore, its role must remain pivotal in the Taliban regime. According to Caliber Obscura, “If the Taliban deploys the elements of this brigade in a location, this means that the place is important.” Thus, Badri 313 is considered “a symbol of the Taliban movement's development and commitment to achieving its goals.”

Above all, it reflects the movement's progress in the military field. The country has been at war for 40 years and has learned a lot since the Soviet invasion in 1979.

“We have seen a significant professionalization of the Taliban since the mid-2000s,” said Gilles Dorronsoro, a professor of political science at the University of Paris 1 Pantheon-Sorbonne.

“The war they are waging is not at all like that which their fathers waged against the Russians. They have gained experience in the field and are technically superior,” Dorronsoro added.