Quite a few secular Ashkenazi scholars claim that the Pashtun people of Eastern Afghanistan are indeed Israelites. Is there any truth to this claim?

Pashtuns make up the overwhelming majority of Taliban members. These guys defeated the US military and now they are hardcore Islamists and are in the pockets of the Saudis and the leaders of the gulf states. There used to be a somewhat strong Jewish presence in the country before the Arabs came in the 600s and Islamized the whole place.