Red Group

The Red Group is a military unit of the Taliban, described in some accounts as a special forces group.

History
Red Group saw its first operational deployment in Sangin in early 2016.

In the summer of that year a Taliban spokesperson reported to media that the Red Group was producing consistently "good" results in actions against the Afghan National Army and discussions were underway about utilizing it for increased operational deployments. The assessment of the unit's potency was echoed by provincial officials in Helmand who described the outfit as "very dangerous and very successful".

Tactics and equipment
The Red Group, which numbers approximately 300, reportedly employs commando tactics and is equipped with "advanced weaponry", including night vision equipment, heavy machine guns, and M4 carbines. According to one analyst, it was unlikely the Red Group was effectively performing traditional special operations missions but were, instead, being used as shock troops or as a rapid deployment force.

Leadership
In 2017 the BBC reported the Red Group commander was Mullah Taqi. The previous year, Military Times had reported Haji Nasarv was the unit's commander.