Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada

Amu: According to sources, the move, which has not been publicly announced by the Taliban administration, sidelines the Taliban-run Ministry of Finance and centralizes decision-making in the leader’s stronghold in southern Afghanistan. Sources familiar with internal operations said Akhundzada has established a financial office in Kandahar through which he oversees national budgetary and revenue matters. The growing concentration of authority in Kandahar, especially in the absence of institutional checks, is viewed by some observers as a source of deepening factional divisions within the Taliban leadership. Click here to read more (external link).