Taliban's chief political officer in Qatar Sayed Tayyeb Agha has resigned over the appointment of Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansour as new leader following confirmation of the death of Mullah Omar.
According to Taliban sources, the crisis in the Taliban leadership emerged after Mullah Mansour was appointed as leader. This was followed by Mullah Omar's elder son Mullah Mohammad Yaqub and three other key Taliban commanders walking out of a key meeting last week.
A day after the reported walk out, Pakistan sources said Yaqub had been killed.
Tayeeb Agha, who had once worked as Mullah Omar's personal secretary, believes that hiding Mullah Omar's death for more than two years and then appointing Mullah Mansour outside Afghanistan was "a great historical mistake".
Sources claim that Sher Abbas Stanikzai has been appointed as Tayyeb Agha's replacement.
Meanwhile, the former Taliban commander said that "Mullah Mansour is a very moderate person and I think that if tensions increase among the Taliban he will face problems – especially regarding peace talks."
Mullah Omar's death has reportedly caused a massive rift in the group especially as Taliban fighters on the ground, currently involved in clashes with the Afghan security forces, believed all along they were receiving orders from their late leader. Now most Taliban fighters realize tension exists in the ranks of their leadership.
The rift has however resulted in Daesh making use of the discontent among the militants said one Pakistani political analyst, Rahimullah Yusufzai. "I think that after a big leader died and another was appointed as replacement, he will not have the same reception and they will weaken on the battle field and most of them will join the Daesh," he said.
This is the first time that Afghanistan has witnessed such discontent among the Taliban.
"The Afghan government can use the current tension of the Taliban to their benefit. The government should have a plan and think deeply about what they can do to reach to their goals," a former military analyst Atiqullah Amarkhli said.
There are some people however who criticize government over not having a program in place to use this opportunity to benefit the country.
LINK: https://www.ansarpress.com/english/4003