Yesterday, Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar issued an Eid message, which addressed his followers, the wider Muslim world, the Afghan, government, the US, Europe, neighboring countries, and “the Islamic Conference and the So-called Human Rights Organizations.” In the statement, Omar again rejects negotiations with the West, and instead insists foreign troops withdraw: However, the people […]
George Washington University’s National Security Archive has released a series of documents and cables from the US State Department and the CIA on the Taliban. Titled “The Taliban Biography, The Structure and Leadership of the Taliban 1996-2002,” the documents provide interesting background information on the Taliban leadership, and most importantly, show that back in 1998, […]
Mullah Mohammed Omar, the Amir al Mumineen (“the commander of the faithful”) of the Afghan and Pakistani Taliban. According to The Washington Times, Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence agency has helped Mullah Mohammed Omar, the Amir al Mumineen (“the commander of the faithful”) for both the Afghan and Pakistani Taliban, relocate to the southern port city of […]
Mullah Omar. Mullah Mohammed Omar, the overall leader of the Taliban movement (the Amīr al-Mu’minīn or Commander of the Faithful), has released a rare statement, which has been published on the Internet. In the statement, titled “The Afghan Historical Background and the Impetuous Outburst of the British Ambassador,” Omar advises the British to study Afghan […]
Baitullah Mehsud, Mullah Nazir, and Hafiz Gul Bahadar have joined forces and created the Council of United Mujahideen to fight against ‘infidels’ in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and the US.
The leader of the Taliban in Afghanistan issues a statement dismissing southern Afghanistan commander Mullah Mansoor Dadullah. Mansoor denied dismissal as a conspiracy, but Omar released a statement on a Taliban website.
The Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan highlights the often overlooked relationship between the Afghan Taliban, its Pakistani brothers, and al Qaeda, and Pakistan’s complicity in propping up terror networks.
The camp is named after the second Muslim caliph who was a companion to the Prophet Muhammad and who expanded the caliphate in the seventh century.
Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb and Al Nusrah Front have jointly issued a eulogy for Mullah Mansour, the Taliban’s chief leader. Mansour was killed in an American drone strike on May 21.
Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada, the group’s top judicial officer, is the Taliban’s new emir. Siraj Haqqani, the Taliban’s military commander, remains one of the Taliban’s top two deputies. Mullah Mohammad Yaqoub, Mullah Omar’s eldest son, has been elevated to serve as a deputy to Haibatullah.
Mullah Mansour was targeted in an airstrike in Baluchistan province. If Mansour is confirmed killed, one of his likely successors is Sirajuddin Haqqani, the leader of the Haqqani Network who is closely tied to al Qaeda.
Since Mullah Mansour was appointed the Taliban’s new emir in July 2015, the Taliban has consistently said that Zakir, a former Guantanamo Bay detainee and senior military commander, has been a member of the Quetta Shura. Zakir formally swore allegiance to Mansour late last month.
The head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights told AFP that Shishani “was seriously injured” and taken to a hospital in Raqqah province, where he was treated by a European doctor.
The Muaskar ul Fida is likely loyal to the Haqqani Network, an al Qaeda-linked Taliban group that is backed by Pakistan’s military and intelligence establishment.
According to a letter attributed to Mullah Adbul Qayoum Zakir, the former Quantanamo Bay detainee denied reports that he is at odds with new Taliban emir Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansour.
Umar Media, official propaganda outlet of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan, published the photograph of their emir, who was killed by the US on Nov. 1.
“If America believes that by martyring Mujahideen they will somehow create a void and reach their selfish aims then they are greatly mistaken,” the Afghan Taliban also said.
Khan Said, who is also known as Sajna Mehsud, is said to have been appointed to lead the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan.
The Afghan Taliban is deferential to Pakistan while noting Baradar remains in custody.
Bilal Zadran is said to have replaced Mullah Sangeen Zadran, who is thought to have been killed in a US drone strike in North Waziristan in early September.
Baradar’s release is unlikely to impact the “peace process” in Afghanistan. His release will be viewed as a victory for the Taliban.
Mullah Omar’s former deputy, who was detained in Karachi in 2010, will be freed in Pakistan, not Afghanistan.
The senior Haqqani Network commander and a Lashkar al Zil explosives expert are said to be among those killed in yesterday’s strike in North Waziristan.
Bahawal Khan, the leader of the Mullah Nazir Group who is considered to be part of the “good Taliban” by Pakistani officials, continues to support al Qaeda, runs training camps, and conducts operations in Afghanistan.
Bahwal Khan, the new emir of the Mullah Nazir group, maintains close ties to al Qaeda, the Afghan Taliban, and a host of terrorist groups, US intelligence officials told The Long War Journal. Additionally, the US intelligence officials denied that the Pakistani government or military aided in the killing of Nazir.
Nazir, who has professed his alligiance to al Qaeda, was killed along with several deputies in one of three strikes in North and South Waziristan over the past 24 hours. A separate strike killed Faisal Khan, a Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan commander, and two Uzbeks.
The top spokesman for the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan denied his group was involved in the assassination attempt that targeted Mullah Nazir, an al Qaeda-linked Taliban leader in South Waziristan.
Mullah Nazir ordered all Mehsud tribesmen to leave South Waziristan’s largest town before Dec. 5 or face the consequences. Nazir clearly holds the Mehsud tribe responsible for the Nov. 29 suicide attack against him and his associates at the Rustam bazaar in Wana.
The al Qaeda-linked Taliban subgroup has been conducting assassinations and suicide assaults in the Afghan south for years.
Sangeen is on the US’s list of designated terrorists for his close ties to al Qaeda.