Afghan National Security Forces Explained

The Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF), also known as the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF), were the military and internal security forces of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.

As of 30 June 2020, the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) or Afghan National Defence and Security Forces (ANDSF) were composed of the Afghan National Army (including the Afghan Border Force, Afghan Air Force, Afghan Territorial Army, Afghan National Civil Order Force), Afghan National Police (including Afghan Local Police), and the National Directorate of Security (including the Afghan Special Force).

In August 2021, after the Taliban captured the Afghan capital Kabul and other major cities, US President Joe Biden said that the forces collapsed, sometimes without trying to fight and that they were not willing to fight for themselves, with the exception of very brave and capable Afghan special forces units and soldiers.^{[1] [2]} In an Al Jazeera editorial Abdul Basit wrote that the forces "preferred to save their lives by surrendering to the Taliban under its amnesty offers".^[3]

Structure

The Afghan National Security Forces consisted of

• Ministry of Defence
  • Afghan National Army (ANA): In December 2020 the U.S. Department of Defense wrote that the ANA General Staff commanded and controlled all of Afghanistan’s ground and air forces, including "the ANA conventional forces, the Afghan Air Force (AAF), the Special Mission Wing (SMW), the ANA Special Operations Command (ANASOC), the Afghan National Civil Order Force (ANCOF), and the Afghan Border Force (ABF). In total, the ANA consisted of 27 combat brigades, three combat air wings, four branch and basic training schools, seven ANCOF brigades, seven ABF brigades, and additional support facilities such as depots and hospitals."
• Ministry of Interior Affairs
  • Afghan National Police (ANP)
    • Afghan Uniformed Police (AUP)
    • Public Security Police (PSP)
    • Afghan Border Police (ABP)
    • General Directorate for Intelligence and Counter Crime (GDICC) (formerly Afghan Anti-Crime Police (AACP))
    • Afghan Public Protection Force (APPF)
    • Counter Narcotics Police of Afghanistan (CNPA)
    • Afghan Local Police (ALP)
  • General Command of Police Special Units (GCPSU)
    • Afghan Territorial Force (ATF) 444
    • Crisis Response Unit (CRU) 222
    • Commando Force (CF) 333 (formerly Afghan Special Narcotics Force)^[4]

NATO special operations forces trained, advised and assisted the ANASOC, SMW and GCPSU who were collectively known as the Afghan Special Security Forces (ASSF). The ASSF was described as the "ANDSF’s primary offensive forces".

The National Directorate of Security (NDS) was the state intelligence and security service and was part of the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces.^[5] The NDS reported directly to the Office of President.

See also

• Military of Afghanistan
• Law enforcement in Afghanistan

Bibliography

• Book: European Asylum Support Office . Afghanistan - State Structure and Security Forces - Country of Origin Information Report . August 2020 . Publications Office of the European Union . 9789294856500 . 18 August 2021 . 7 November 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201107201324/https://www.justice.gov/eoir/page/file/1311341/download . dead .
• Book: Helmus . Todd C. . Advising the Command : Best Practices from the Special Operation's Advisory Experience in Afghanistan . 2015 . RAND Corporation . Santa Monica, CA . 9780833088918 . 19 August 2021 .
• Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction. Afghan Special Mission Wing : DOD moving forward with $771.8 million purchase of aircraft that Afghans cannot operate or maintain.. June 2013. Arlington, Va. 851498021. https://web.archive.org/web/20130718040041/http://www.sigar.mil/pdf/audits/2013-05-27-audit-13-13.pdf. 18 July 2013. dead.
• Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction . Police in conflict: lessons from the U.S. experience in Afghanistan . June 2022 . Arlington, Va . 1408444974 . 2 March 2024.
• Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction . Quarterly report to the United States Congress . 30 July 2021 . Arlington, Va . 19 August 2021 .
• United States. Department of Defense. Enhancing Security and Stability in Afghanistan. December 2020b. 7-653B15D. 18 August 2021.

Further reading

• Book: Jalali . Ali A. . Afghanistan National Defense and Security Forces : mission, challenges, and sustainability . 2016 . United States Institute of Peace . Washington, DC . 9781601276018 . Peaceworks No. 115. 19 August 2021.
• United Nations Assistance Mission In Afghanistan. Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights . Afghanistan Protection Of Civilians In Armed Conflict Annual Report 2020 . February 2021 . Kabul, Afghanistan . 19 August 2021.
• United States. Department of Defense. Enhancing Security and Stability in Afghanistan. June 2020a. E-2BA2571. 18 August 2021.

External links

• Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF), Media Backgrounder, NATO, October 2013

Notes and References

1. US President Joe Biden . Remarks by President Biden on Afghanistan . The White House . 30 April 2024 . 16 August 2021.
2. Web site: Bennett . John T. . 2021-08-16 . Biden defends Afghan withdrawal, says country’s military ‘refused to fight’ . 2024-04-28 . rollcall.com . en-US.
3. Web site: Basit . Abdul . Why did the Afghan army disintegrate so quickly? . 2024-04-28 . Al Jazeera . 17 August 2021. en.
4. Web site: Willasey-Wilsey . Tim . Afghanistan: A Final British Betrayal? . Royal United Services Institute . 2 March 2024 . 30 August 2023.
5. Web site: Afghanistan (2017) . The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency . https://web.archive.org/web/20180429155835/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/resources/the-world-factbook/geos/af.html . 29 April 2018 . 24 April 2018 . dead.