1TV: The leader of a breakaway faction of the Taliban is leading his fighters in Afghanistan, his deputy said on Tuesday, contradicting three senior members of the Islamist group and denying a newspaper report that he had been detained. Three senior Taliban told Reuters that Mullah Mohammad Rasoul, who leads a faction that has rejected the authority
VOA News Ayaz Gul March 18, 2016 ISLAMABAD—A helicopter belonging to NATO-led forces made a “hard” landing in southern Afghanistan Friday, but all personnel on board “have been recovered with no casualties,” a U.S. military spokesman said, dismissing Taliban claims of shooting down the aircraft. The incident happened in the restive Helmand province, the site
Khaama Press: The dissident Taliban leader Mullah Rasool has said he will not participate in peace talks with the government which is led by the Taliban supreme leader Mullah Akhtar Mansoor. In an interview with the UK-based Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), Mullah Rasool has said he is not opposed to reconciliation in principle, insisting that
VOA News Ayaz Gul March 17, 2016 ISLAMABAD—In a major move in efforts to end the conflict in Afghanistan, representatives of fugitive Afghan warlord Gulbuddin Hekmatyar have held preliminary peace talks with Afghan negotiators in Kabul. Hekmatyar, 68, leads the Hezb-e-Islami faction that has staged deadly attacks against the U.S.-led international forces and their Afghan
HERAT, Afghanistan, March 11 (Xinhua) — Taliban infighting in western Herat province has claimed scores of lives over the past couple of days, local officials and sources close to the Taliban said Friday. The fighting occurred between supporters of Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansoor and backers of his opponent Mullah Mohammad Rasoul in Shindand
VOA News Carla Babb March 10, 2016 PENTAGON—The Taliban is fracturing in Afghanistan’s Helmand province, a known Taliban stronghold, a U.S. general in Kabul said Thursday. General Wilson Shoffner told reporters via telephone that the U.S. is seeing an “emergence of three separate Taliban groups” in northern Helmand, and that all three factions are largely
VOA News Ayaz Gul March 9, 2016 ISLAMABAD—Authorities in Afghanistan’s restive southern province of Helmand say a group of at least 10 heavily-armed Taliban fighters have staged a coordinated assault, triggering a gun battle with security forces. The attack early Wednesday in the Gereshk district targeted the police headquarters and offices of the Afghan spy
Khaama Press: Ghazni’s governor said that one group belongs to Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansour and the other one to Mullah Mohammad Rasoul. The clashes which started in the jurisdiction of Nawa District earlier this morning have so far left 27 militants killed. Click here to read more (external link).
Tolo News: Mullah Obidullah Hunar is believed to be the leader of newly formed group and claims that Mullah Akhtar Mansour is funded by Pakistani intelligence and therefore they do not recognize him as their leader. The newly emerged Taliban faction said that after this they will conduct Jihad against groups funded by Pakistan intelligence. Click here
Press TV February 9, 2016 A senior member of Taliban’s leadership died in a hospital in Pakistan’s southwest, in what could embarrass Islamabad and expose its alleged links to the militants in neighboring Afghanistan. Sources said on Tuesday that Mullah Muhammad Hassan Rahmani, a member of Taliban’s Shoura Council, died overnight of cancer in a