Behind disappearance Taliban’s number two man since government formation

Mohamed Yosry

Since the Taliban formed its new government, which did not include any names from outside the movement, a number of these names have disappeared in mysterious circumstances, most notably the acting Prime Minister, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, who has not appeared in public since then, which has thrown a state of uncertainty about his unknown fate, especially in light of the movement being used to keeping secrets of its elders, such as Mullah Mohammed Omar, who remained hidden and whose death was not announced until two years after his disappearance, as well as Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada, who has not appeared for more than a year amid reports of his death in Pakistan last year.

Disagreements within the movement

Despite what the movement used hide of the news of its leaders, there is what could indicate that the disappearance this time is a political disappearance due to the differences that have erupted within the Taliban since the announcement of the formation of the government. On September 14, senior officials in the movement confirmed that there is a major dispute erupted between Taliban leaders over the composition of the new government.

They added, in statements published by a number of newspapers, that an argument between the group’s co-founder, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, and a member of the Cabinet who refused to take over as prime minister, took place in the presidential palace in Kabul.

The altercation between Baradar and Minister of Refugees Khalil-ur-Rahman Haqqani, a prominent figure in the extremist Haqqani network, exchanged strong words, while their followers quarrel with each other nearby.

Baradar’s disappearance

A few days ago, it was reported that Baradar was killed after he was seriously injured during a fight with a prominent figure in the movement due to a dispute over ministerial portfolios in the Taliban government.

This news was fueled by the absence of Baradar from the delegation that met with Qatari Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani in Kabul, while the movement’s officials justified this by saying that he was not in Kabul and went to Kandahar, where the headquarters of the group’s leader, Mullah Akhundzada, is located.

The movement tried to deny this news in a number of ways. It began by publishing a written message attributed to Baradar indicating that he was in Kandahar, and then the movement published an audio message attributed to him, which increased the state of ambiguity about his fate since there was no videotape of him.

The movement’s spokesman, Suhail Shaheen, also tried to deny the disappearance of Baradar, writing on Twitter, “Mullah Baradar, Deputy Prime Minister of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, in an audio message, denied all these allegations related to his injury or death during clashes, and said that they are lies and baseless.”

Questions still surround Baradar’s disappearance despite all these attempts, which have not yet proven his whereabouts, increasing speculation about his injury or death.

Political disappearance

With the likely injury of Baradar, there is another explanation for his disappearance, which is the political disappearance at this stage, as the movement used to deliberately not show its leaders in public events. The movement currently does not allow easy interviews or holding press conferences with its leaders, and many of them move in secret as a precautionary security measure, in addition to the Taliban’s reservations about determining their place of residence for this reason as well.