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New Taliban Leadership Under Mohammad
Nabi?
By Hosbanullah Mutawakel
PESHAWAR, Dec. 5 (IslamOnline) - A number of opposition members inside the Taliban are thinking of forming a new movement for the militia under the leadership of Maulawi Mohamad Nabi Mohamadi, Pakistani news sources told IslamOnline.
The decision came after a dispute rose within the Taliban regarding the withdrawal from Kandahar, their last stronghold, after previous withdrawals from nearly all other Afghan cities.
"There are discussions taking place right now between Taliban leaders who oppose Mullah [Mohammed] Omar and some Pakistani officials, as well as a few leaders of the Afghani Northern Alliance to resurrect the Taliban. The new movement will be different from the one which was under Mullah Omar and will hold dialogue with the United States to prevent further bloodshed," the source told IslamOnline (IOL).
Mohamadi originates from the province of Logar and is currently carrying out several contacts to establish the new movement. He is also the leader of the Islamic Revolt Movement, which fought the Soviet Union in the 1980s, and was also a Parliament member during the reign of King Zahir Shah.
Many Taliban leaders were members in the Islamic Revolt movement, including Amir Khan Mutaqi, the Taliban Minister of Education - who served in the past as the chief security officer of Mohamadi.
Afghan sources told IOL that they expect the new efforts to result in a new movement during the next few days.
The news coincides with a report published Tuesday by the Pakistani daily newspaper,
News, which said that during the next few days Mullah Omar is likely to face opposition from Wakil Ahmad Mutawakil, the foreign minister in the movement. This confrontation is expected to happen when, and if, U.S. forces and allies capture or kill Osama bin Laden. At such point, Mutwakil is expected to breakaway from his leader, Mullah Omar.
The paper said that Mutawakil has contacted U.S. forces and promised to collaborate with them in the war against Mullah Omar, adding that there were other leaders as well who were willing to join in, including Mawlawi Abdel Kabir, deputy prime minister and mayor of Ningerhar before the withdrawal of the Taliban.
Other leaders willing to join in against Mullah Omar include Mullah Ubaidullah, Minister of Defense; Mullah Turabi, Minister of Justice; Mullah Ahmad Jan, Minister of Minerals; Mullah Thaqib, head of the Supreme Court; and Mullah Sadr Azam, deputy mayor of Ningerhar.
Those who are still with Mullah Omar include Mullah Hassan Rahmani, Mayor of Kandahar, and Amir Khan Mutaqi, Minister of Education, reported the
News.
For his part, Mullah Omar in a statement Tuesday said, "We are not afraid from the international non-believer calls. We want to establish the law of Allah on earth."
He asked Muslims not to sit and watch Muslim blood being shed on television, but instead participate in the struggle against the "non-believers".
Mullah Hassan Rahmani, the mayor of Kandahar, announced Monday that the Taliban movement does not intend to withdraw from Kandahar or leave it for the Northern Alliance. He added that Mullah Omar is still in Kandahar and is leading Taliban forces himself.
In a statement released Monday, U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld threatened to kill all those who did not surrender their weapons and place them on the ground in front of coalition forces. He added that those who surrender would be spared death.
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