Afghan National Army Commando Corps
The Afghan National Army Commandos were the light infantry and direct action force of the Afghan National Army. During the war in Afghanistan against the Taliban insurgency, the Commandos represented 7% of the Afghan National Security Forces but conducted 70% to 80% of the fighting. The structure of the unit was based on the United States Army's 75th Ranger Regiment. They were responsible for raids on strategic targets and for assisting the regular army in counterinsurgency operations.
The Commandos were widely regarded as the most effective part of the Afghan security forces and were heavily depended on by the Afghan and U.S. leadership. They were partnered with foreign special operations units, particularly the United States Army Special Forces, and frequently conducted missions together. A total of ten Commando battalions were organized between 2007 and 2021. From 2011, the Commandos were part of the ANA Special Operations Command. Commando battalions functioned on 18-week cycles with six weeks each of training, operations, and recovery. The Commando Training Center was located at Camp Morehead near Kabul.
Their notable operations included the retaking of the city of Kunduz from the Taliban in 2015 and the Mohmand Valley raid that killed the leader of the Islamic State in Afghanistan in 2017. After the U.S. withdrew the majority of its troops by 2015, the Afghan government became reliant on the Commandos. Despite an effort by the U.S. and NATO to make them capable of independent operations, the Commandos still depended on foreign support after 2015, due to the Afghan military's logistical problems and the country's lack of infrastructure. During the 2021 Taliban offensive the Commandos and the Afghan Air Force were the main units sent by the government to respond to Taliban advances, but they found themselves isolated and with no logistical support as the regular forces collapsed.
Upon the fall of Kabul and the collapse of both the ANA and Islamic Republic of Afghanistan in August 2021, the Commando Corps was dissolved. The new Taliban regime claimed it reactivated the unit with a new flag and a new emblem, in the Islamic Emirate Army, but it is unknown if any of the previous personnel or training got transferred. The majority of former Commandos are reportedly living in the country in hiding, though some are known to have joined the Republican insurgency in Afghanistan against the Taliban.
History
Formation
During the United States invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 and the start of Operation Enduring Freedom, the first phase of the War in Afghanistan, the U.S. Army Special Forces worked with Afghan local militias against the Taliban. The war effort eventually transitioned from removing the Taliban from power to assisting the U.S.-backed Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, led by President Hamid Karzai. However, the U.S. initially had no plans to establish a special operations force for the Afghan National Army, the military of the new government. But after the success of the Iraqi Special Operations Forces, which had been organized by the Green Berets, the decision was made to create a similar unit in Afghanistan. Known as the ANA Commandos or Afghan Commandos, their purpose would be to work with allied special operations units and conduct missions that were too complex for ANA regular forces. In late 2006 it was determined that instead of being organized like the Green Berets the new Afghan unit would become elite light infantry similar to the United States Army Rangers. This was due to the belief that the situation in Afghanistan was different from the Iraq War and had different requirements. Afghan leaders were also consulted and made suggestions based on their experience with the previous Afghan Commando Forces, which had been organized by the Soviet military during the Soviet-Afghan War.The creation of the Commandos received critical support from the ANA chief of operations, Major General Sher Mohammad Karimi, himself a graduate of the Special Forces Qualification Course in the United States. In November 2006, a battalion of soldiers from the Afghan Army's 201st Corps, led by Lieutenant Colonel Mohammad Farid Ahmadi, was selected to be the first to go through Commando training, because it had high morale compared to other units. The battalion graduated in July 2007 after three months of training at a base just outside of Kabul. U.S. advisors set up the Commando Training Center at Camp Morehead, and from the first battalion also trained a cadre of 100 Afghan instructors to assist them. They underwent six months of training in Jordan. Camp Morehead was also the same base that the Soviets had used to train their Afghan Commandos. At the time there was a plan for each of the five ANA corps to eventually have a Commando unit and for one to be stationed in Kabul as a rapid counter-terrorism force. The first unit to graduate was named the 1st Commando Kandak, and was on duty from August 2007. Its original structure consisted of three Commando companies and one headquarters and service company.
Operation Enduring Freedom
The first operation of the 1st Commando Kandak was from 12–14 September 2007, capturing a Taliban explosive maker in Sherzad District, Nangarhar Province, while working with the Afghan police and being advised by coalition forces. During 10–14 November, in a joint operation with the Afghan National Police known as Operation Commando Fury, the 1st Commando Kandak successfully raided a Taliban facility in the Tagab District, Kapisa Province. In February 2008, an operation by Commandos known as "Say Laab" in the Helmand Province reportedly resulted in the death of an important Taliban commander, Abdul Bari. By April 2008 three commando battalions were functional and had carried out targeted raids that killed or captured 30 insurgent leaders in eastern Afghanistan, while working with U.S. Special Forces ODAs. That month, about 100 Commandos from the first battalion took part in the Battle of Shok Valley alongside Green Berets on a mission to eliminate Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, leader of the Hezb-e Islami Gulbuddin militia. The enemy force was stronger than expected, and Commandos notably fought in a counterattack to push militia fighters away from a casualty evacuation site during the seven-hour gunfight. They were led by a Green Beret sergeant who later received the Medal of Honor for leading the counterattack and saving the lives of several injured soldiers. Hekmatyar was able to escape.While the original plan by the International Security Assistance Force was for one brigade with six kandaks, the ANA wanted a full division with three brigades and 15 kandaks. Two battalions were operational from 2007, three from 2008, and one from 2009, finishing the original plan. As of 2010 there was a 1st Commando Brigade that consisted of one battalion in Kabul, and was also known as the National Commando Brigade, while the other five battalions were each assigned to a regional corps. When the last battalion entered service, the head of the Combined Forces Special Operations Command – Afghanistan ordered the creation of another four. Two were operational from 2010, one from 2011, and the last from 2015.
File:Afghan National Army Commandos conduct fast rope training in 2010 291480.jpg|thumb|left|Commandos during fast rope training from an Afghan Air Force Mil Mi-17, 16 February 2010.
In 2010 the Afghan National Army Special Forces were established to assist with providing human intelligence, foreign internal defense, and advising Afghan regular units. Their focus was on reconnaissance and covert operations while Commandos conducted raids. Recruits were found among the Commandos and they were put through several months of training by Green Berets. Graduates received the Special Forces tab in addition to their Commando tab. Afghan Special Forces Commando teams were modeled on U.S. Special Forces ODA teams. However, this also had an impact on the Commando battalions, because some of their trained personnel were sent to the Special Forces, and they now had to compete with a higher-tier unit for recruits. In mid-2011 the Afghan National Army Special Operations Command was organized to oversee Commando, Special Forces, and other special operations-capable units. The staff of the ANA 1st Commando Brigade headquarters provided the cadre for the ANASOC headquarters.
Commandos responded to the January 2010 Kabul attack. On 25 May 2010, a force of 300 to 500 Taliban fighters, including foreign fighters, attacked the district capital of Barg-i Matal District, Nuristan Province. It was abandoned by the Afghan Local Police to avoid civilian casualties. The district was the site of a Taliban supply line as it was located near the border with Pakistan. Following ISAF airstrikes against Taliban targets on 31 May, around 200 Afghan commandos conducted an air assault that retook the district and linked up with the local police. The operation restored Afghan government control over the area. On 25 July 2010, Commandos and U.S. forces conducted a night raid in Arghandab District, Kandahar Province, as part of Operation Hamkari, aimed at removing the Taliban presence around the city of Kandahar. During 13–16 May 2011, the 5th Commando Kandak and U.S. forces raided Taliban fighters in the Qaysar District, Faryab Province, and reportedly killed a high-ranking leader. On 6 August 2011 a U.S. Chinook helicopter transporting 38 personnel, including seven Afghan Commandos and their interpreter, was shot down by insurgents in the Wardak Province, killing all aboard. In March 2012 members of the 1st, 2nd, and 6th Commando Kandaks took part in clearing operations throughout eastern Afghanistan.
On 8 April 2012, the U.S. and Afghan authorities signed a memorandum of understanding that Afghan forces would take the lead on special operations missions. As the U.S. began reducing its troops in Afghanistan, a significant portion of those who were left were special operators working with the Commandos and ANASOC. The Afghan Commandos started taking a larger role in planning and leading their operations. The Afghan Air Force notably carried out a mission with Commandos that was entirely planned, led, and implemented by the Afghan military on 20 February 2013, in the Kandahar Province. The 2nd Special Operations Brigade was established around this time and was responsible for western Afghanistan. It consisted of the 3rd, 4th, 7th, and 9th Commando Kandaks. The brigade created an extra layer of command between the kandaks and the division and corps commanders. In August 2013 soldiers of the 2nd brigade received a Presidential Valorous Combat Unit award for actions in the Herat Province. In September 2013 the 5th Commando Kandak cleared several villages and insurgent bases in Badakhshan Province with regular units from the ANA 209th Corps, which resulted in the death of a Taliban commander.