Afghanistan International: A retired Pakistani army general, Inam-ul-Haq, has revealed deepening tensions within the Taliban, spotlighting a rift between the Haqqani Network and the Kandahar faction, in an Express Tribune article. He outlined how disputes over the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), girls’ education bans, Pakistan relations, and governance are driving the divide. Click here to read
Amu: Nineteen days after reappearing publicly at a mosque in Khost following a 52-day absence, Sirajuddin Haqqani, the acting interior minister of the Taliban, has yet to be seen at the ministry or participate in official events, raising fresh questions about his status and role within the Taliban hierarchy. No photographs or statements have emerged
Amu: Hibatullah Akhundzada, the reclusive supreme leader of the Taliban, warned during Eid al-Fitr prayers in Kandahar that disobedience to his orders could lead to the collapse of Taliban rule and plunge Afghanistan back into civil war. In an audio message obtained by Amu and attributed to Hibatullah, he described obedience to Taliban leadership as
Afghanistan International: Michael Kugelman, South Asia Director at the Wilson Center, says the United States is signalling a shift in its approach to the Taliban. He believes the US is now looking to work more closely with Taliban leaders based in Kabul, sidelining the group’s leadership in Kandahar. According to Kugelman, the US has limited
Afghanistan International: Sirajuddin Haqqani, the Taliban’s Interior Minister, has gone into hiding over fears of assassination, according to Ahmad Zia Saraj, former head of Afghanistan’s National Directorate of Security (NDS). Saraj told Afghanistan International that Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada suspects Haqqani and several officials of plotting a coup. He believes foreign countries may have backed
Amu: Taliban leader Haibatullah Akhundzada has appointed five new provincial police chiefs in recent weeks, bypassing Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani, who has been absent from public view for over a month, sources said. Mohammad Asif Siddiqui, a former deputy chairman of the Afghan Senate, said that police appointments now come directly from Akhundzada without the
Amu: Sirajuddin Haqqani, the Taliban’s interior minister, has not returned to Afghanistan more than 40 days after traveling to the United Arab Emirates, sources told Amu TV. Haqqani, who left for the UAE on Jan. 22, remains outside the country as reports of growing tensions within the Taliban leadership continue to emerge. Click here to
Afghanistan International: Documents obtained by Afghanistan International reveal that Mohammad Yousuf Wafa, the Taliban governor of Balkh, has filed a formal complaint with the Taliban Supreme Court, calling for a military trial of Abbas Stanekzai, the group’s deputy foreign minister. Wafa accused Stanekzai of “disrespecting” Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada and opposing his decrees. Click here
Amu: Amid reports of rising internal tensions, Abdul Kabir, the Taliban’s minister for refugees, has rejected the idea that leadership is open to all, emphasizing the authority of their reclusive leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada. Speaking at a gathering in Kabul on Thursday, Feb. 20, Kabir insisted that Akhundzada remains the recognized leader and that Taliban officials
Afghanistan International: Mohammad Mohaqiq, leader of the People’s Islamic Unity Party of Afghanistan, has stated that internal divisions within the Taliban could lead figures such as Sirajuddin Haqqani and Mullah Baradar to join the Vienna Process. Speaking in an interview with Afghanistan International on Tuesday, Mohaqiq, a participant in the Vienna Process, stressed that if