Texas Rep. Michael McCaul warned on Newsmax that according to information he received in a U.S. intelligence briefing, the Taliban are resurging in Afghanistan.
Appearing Thursday on "The Chris Salcedo Show," McCaul, the lead Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said: "It's so clear, it's going to be ugly. It's going to get worse."
"The Taliban," McCaul said, "most likely will take over" the regions in Afghanistan. "I worry about the embassy [in Kabul]. I'm worried about Bagram Air Base. We just abandoned that and left it to the Afghans, who will probably be overtaken by the Taliban."
On Sunday, according to the New York Post, McCaul said that Afghan President Ashraf Ghani warned him that the removal of U.S. troops from the country would mark "the year of the jihad."
"What [does he] mean by that?" McCaul said. "It means all the young males in Pakistan at the madrassas are poised with the Taliban to pour over into Afghanistan and you're going to see a major civil war take place. And I don't think, at the end of the day, it's going to look pretty."
McCaul predicted that the Taliban will take over the region in six months.
On Tuesday, the Post reported, the Taliban had seized U.S. weapons and military equipment, including Humvees, tanks and assault weapons, from Afghan security. The Taliban have already captured critical districts in the northern part of the country with little to no resistance from Afghan forces.
The speed of the pullout from Bagram Air Base has also left an opportunity for the Taliban to seize equipment left behind by the U.S. military. The base has been an operations hub during the 20-year war. One Taliban commander said his fighters seized 70 sniper rifles, 900 guns, 30 Humvees, 20 pickup trucks and 15 armored vehicles from Afghan forces.
McCaul also cited his concern for the interpreters who have worked in the area with U.S. troops.
"I'm particularly worried also about these interpreters that fought alongside with our special forces. We promised we would take care of them. I think so far, we're failing in that responsibility, and I do think the president is going to have blood on his hands at the end of the day."
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