But amid their rapid gains, confusion surrounds the fate of insurgent leader Mansour, who was shot in a firefight during an argument with commanders of the divided movement on Tuesday. “Mansour himself fooled us for two years, how can we trust this now?” he said. “There is no truth to the rumors that I was injured or killed in Kuchlak” near Quetta, in the southwestern province of Balochistan in Pakistan, said the man claiming to be the Taliban’s leader.
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“I have recorded this message to let everyone know that I am alive”, the man purported to be Mansour says in a relaxed drawl.
Mohibullah, a Taliban commander loyal to the late Mansoor Dadullah, later claimed responsibility for the attack on Mulla Akhtar Mansour in an interview with a radio channel. This is enemy propaganda…
The statement released on Saturday referred to an incident in Maidan Wardak province, southwest of Kabul on Friday, in which at least eight civilians were killed in front of a mosque by mortar rounds fired by Afghan government forces.
A senior Pakistani intelligence official said that Mansour had been “very seriously injured” in what he described as a “heavy exchange of fire” at a gathering of militant commanders near the Pakistani city of Quetta. “It will be released soon”, Zabihulla Mujahid said.
The Islamist motion had repeatedly denied that Mansour had been harm however the extremely uncommon audio message appeared to mirror concern at how widespread the studies had grow to be and the way damaging they might show to unity. “If they d done it earlier it might have been more effective”, he said.
He added that uncertainty within the ranks had been compounded by the mystery surrounding the death of Mullah Omar. He was elected Afghan Taliban chief on July 31 after the terror group confirmed the death of Mullah Omar.
But splits immediately emerged in the group, with some top leaders refusing to pledge allegiance to Mansour, saying the process to select him was rushed and even biased.
A breakaway faction of the Taliban led by Mullah Mohamed Rasool was formed in November, in the first formal division in the once-unified group.
In the audio message Mansour also announced that he had no fight with any of the opponents in insurgent group.
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He was believed to be a proponent of such talks, a stance which prompted rancor among hardline insurgents.
