Afghan National Army Commando Corps

The first Commando battalion was formed from existing Infantry battalions. The program was established in early 2007 with the intent of taking one conventional infantry kandak (battalion) from each of the regional ANA corps, giving them special training and equipment, and reorganizing based on the United States Army Rangers. Each battalion was assigned to one of the six regional corps.

Training was conducted at the Morehead Commando Training Center (Rish Khor camp), a former Taliban training compound located ten kilometres (six miles) south of Kabul. The camp was reported as being in either Wardak Province or Kabul Province.[7]

The 12-week course ran three separate training programmes for different parts of the nascent unit at the same time. The primary and bulk of the training was geared for the infantry toli (company), with a focus on individual skills and small unit tactics. To support the fighting companies, the Headquarters and Headquarters Toli received other training such as in mortars, medical care, and communications. The third section focused on the kandak staff, and their command and control functions.[8]

The unit recruits from all over Afghanistan from various Afghan Army units, taking in prospective Pashtuns, Tajik, Hazara, Uzbek and Turkmen to prevent forms of tribal allegiance and bias.[6]

The first Commando Kandak graduated on July 24, 2007, with Col. Fareed Ahmadi as the kandak commander.[9] Upon graduation, each Commando Kandak returned to its designated corps area along with an embedded U.S. Army Special Forces A-Team, and began going through an 18-week cycle: six weeks each of train-up, missions and recovery. 3rd Special Forces Group and 7th Special Forces Group rotated responsibility to train and advise in Afghanistan.[10]

Brig. Gen. Dadan Lawang, commander, 1st Commando Brigade, join local leaders as they prepare to break ground on the repair of Route Highlife during a ceremony March 11, 2011, at the Khakrez District Center in Kandahar Province.

While the original International Security Assistance Force plan was for one Brigade with six Kandaks (Battalions), the ANA had originally wanted a full division with three Brigades and 15 Kandaks.[11]

Graduating classes

Members of the 201st Commando Kandak prior to a mission in 2008

• The 1st Commando Kandak (Battalion) - graduated on July 24, 2007 - stationed with the 201st 'Selab' (Flood) Corps of the Afghan National Army.[12]
• The 2nd Commando Kandak - graduated on October 16, 2007 - stationed with the 3rd Brigade (Gardez) of the 203rd 'Tandar' (Thunder) Corps of the Afghan National Army.[13]
• The 3rd Commando Kandak - graduated on January 30, 2008 - stationed with the 1st Brigade (Kandahar) of the 205th 'Atal' (Hero) Corps of the ANA.[13]
• The 4th Commando Kandak - graduated on May 8, 2008 - stationed with the 1st Brigade (Herat) of the 207th 'Zafar' (Victory) Corps of the ANA.[13]
• The 5th Commando Kandak - graduated in October 2008 - stationed with the 1st Brigade (Meymanah) of the 209th 'Shaheen' (Falcon) Corps of the ANA.[13]
• The 6th Commando Kandak - graduated in May 2009, stationed with the 1st Commando Brigade of the ANA
• The 7th Commando Kandak - graduated on January 21, 2010, stationed with the 215th 'Maiwand' (Battle) Corps of the ANA.[13]
• The 8th Commando Kandak "Lamer & Sun" - graduated on May 6, 2011, stationed with the ANA's 1st Commando Brigade.
• The 9th Commando Kandak "Cobra" - graduated on August 17, 2010, stationed with the ANA's 1st Commando Brigade.

7th Commando Kandak (Battalion) in 2010

September 2007: The first ANA Commando Kandak graduated on July 24, 2007.[9] It conducted its first operation, a two-day mission in September 2007, 50 kilometres (30 miles) southwest of Jalalabad in the Sherzad district of Nangarhar province. There they captured two large weapons caches, over 80 kg of opium and detained Haji Shir Khan, a known improvised explosive device maker.[14]

November 2007: 3rd Toli, 1st Commando Kandak (201st Corps), conducted an air-assault raid at dawn on the compound of a high-level Taliban facilitator, kicking off a four-day offensive operation named Operation Commando Fury in the Tag Ab Valley, Kapisa Province, from November 10–14, 2007. A joint effort by the Afghan National Police and other ANA forces assisted the Commando kandak in disrupting the Taliban hold on the Tag Ab Valley.[15]

6th Commando Kandak, performing a clearing exercise in Kabul Province.

December 2007: The second ANA Commando Kandak, originally from the 203rd Corps, conducted a series of raids throughout the Sabari district in Afghanistan's Khowst Province, Dec. 27–28, 2007. During the operation, the force arrested a suspected major insurgent facilitator primarily associated with the Hizb-i-Islami Afghanistan terrorist organization and believed to have ties to the Haqqani network terrorist group, the Taliban and Al-Qaeda. The combined Afghan force conducted the two-day operation without a shot being fired.[16]

January 2008: The Third ANA Commando Kandak, originally from the 205th Corps, along with Coalition forces, conducted a four-day operation to disrupt insurgents activity in the volatile Tag Ab Valley of Kapisa Province January 19–23, 2008. The Third Commando Kandak patrolled the Naghlu Reservoir to the village of Jangali in order to disrupt insurgent activities in the center of the valley as the combined force moved north. This operation served as a graduation exercise to providing confidence in the abilities of the newly formed Commando Kandak.[17]

Afghan commandos preparing for an air assault mission

February 2008: The second ANA Commando Kandak (203rd Corps), along with Coalition forces, captured a key insurgent facilitator in Khost Province February 9, 2008. The Ministry of Defense announced that ANA forces captured a known Taliban commander, Nasimulla, during a combined operation in the Dand Faqiran area of Yaqubi District.[18]

February 2008: 1st Toli of the First ANA Commando Kandak (201st), conducted a night air-assault raid in the Helmand Province to capture the Taliban leader Mullah Abdul Bari. Bari was one of the top remaining Taliban field commanders able to launch deadly attacks in Helmand and Uruzgan province. He led Taliban operations against the British in northern Helmand province in the Kajaki, Musa Qala, and Baghran districts. Bari was the former governor of Helmand under the Taliban regime.

The operation, named "Say Laab", meaning flood, utilized multiple helicopters and put over 100 commandos onto four separate targets simultaneously. The operation captured 11 combatants as well as destroying six enemy vehicles containing thousands of pounds of weapons and munitions, as well as nearly $8 million of illegal narcotics. Bari and 29 Taliban fighters were killed during the five-hour-long operation. The exact date of the operation wasn't given, but was reported by CJTF-82 media center on March 1, 2008.[19]

April 2008: one Commando Kandak (unknown designation) conducted operations in Nuristan Province on April 6, reportedly netted several members of the terrorist group Hezb-e-Islami Gulbuddin (HIG). The mission led to a coalition airstrike that, along with the ground fighting, left as many as 20 insurgents dead.[20]

An ANA Commando with the 3rd Tolai, 1st SOK, patrols through a poppy field during a clearing operation in the Khogyani district, Nangarhar province, o 9 May 2013.

In July 2012, the Afghan commandos conducted their first successful night operation. Pentagon Press Secretary George Little told the media that: "Last night in Afghanistan, US special operations joined Afghan commandos from the first special operations battalion in a full mission exercise demonstrating a night air assault. This was an Afghan plan, an Afghan-led mission. Afghan pilots flew four helicopters during the exercise, which involved more than 50 Afghan commandos, and US special operations forces acting in an advisory capacity. In the exercise, the commandos successfully discovered and apprehended a person of interest, recovered weapons and intelligence."[21]

In March 2013, U.S. special forces handed over a base in Nirkh District Wardak Province to the Afghan commandos.[22] Afghan commandos gradually began taking over the lead from NATO forces the fight against insurgents.[23] In April 2013, Afghan commandos killed 22 insurgents in Nangarhar Province and captured another 10 insurgents.[24]

During the 2021 Taliban offensive, 22 Commandos were executed by the Taliban in the Faryab Province after surrendering.[25] While the Taliban were known to show leniency to normal ANA troops, Commandos and Air Force pilots were especially targeted by the Taliban.[26]

Following the fall of Kabul to the Taliban, on August 17, 2021, several ANA commandos were reported to be moving to Panjshir, joining the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan.[27][28]

Around 500–600 Afghan troops made up mostly of commandos were reported to have also refused to surrender in Kabul and instead joined up with US forces at Hamid Karzai International Airport, helping them secure the outer perimeter of the airport during the 2021 evacuation from Afghanistan.[29]

Britain is contemplating recruiting Afghan commandos who were evacuated to the UK into the British Army after the Afghan military was defeated.[30]