The Chief Executive of the Afghan government, Abdullah Abdullah, on Sunday confirmed the death of Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansour, following earlier reports by the US Pentagon that he had likely been killed.
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Mullah Akhtar Mansour is understood to have died in Saturday’s strike, which targeted the leader and another combatant as they rode in a vehicle in a remote area of Pakistan’s Baluchistan province, south-west of the town of Ahmad Wal, close to the border with Afghanistan.
The Haqqani network, which has for years had strongholds in northwest Pakistani border lands, is a powerful force in eastern Afghanistan’s Paktika province, and the wider Loya Paktia region, but not in the birthplace of the Taliban – Kandahar province in the south.
Mullah Omar’s longtime deputy, Mansour had actually been the Taliban’s de facto leader for years, according to the Afghan government.
One lawmaker said Mansour’s death, if confirmed, would be a significant blow to the Taliban, though not enough to allow the U.S.to disengage from a conflict that has involved thousands of US troops for almost 15 years.
The official said several unmanned aircraft operated by US special operations forces targeted a vehicle southwest of the town of Ahmad Wal in Pakistan’s Baluchistan province.
Mansour reportedly hid Mullah Omar’s death until 2015.
It was first confirmed by the US Department of Defense on Saturday that the Taliban supreme leader was targeted in a drone strike.
The Afghan government has long accused the Pakistani authorities of harboring and supporting the Afghan Taliban.
Mullah Omar was the one-eyed, secretive head of the Taliban, whose group hosted Osama Bin Laden’s al-Qaida in the years leading up to the September 11 attacks and then waged an insurgency after the 2001 us -led invasion that ended Taliban rule.
Authorised by US President Barack Obama, the strike took place at about 6 a.m. EDT (1000 GMT), the official said, which would have placed it late on Friday night in the target area. Mansour was Mullah Omar’s deputy and was formally appointed head of the Taliban in July 2015 after the revelation of Omar’s death.
“I’m glad to hear we chose to bring the leader of the Afghan Taliban, Mullah Akhtar Mansour, to justice”.
The drone strike targeted Mansour’s vehicle, which at the time was carrying Mansour and one other person, the vehicle’s driver, a U.S. military source said.
But one US official said Mansour and a second male combatant accompanying him in a vehicle were probably killed.
The NDS also called on Taliban fighters to renounce violence and join the government-initiated peace and national reconciliation process.
The statement added that Mansour was “the leader of the Taliban and actively involved with planning attacks against facilities in Kabul and across Pakistan, presenting a threat to Afghan civilians and security forces, our personnel and coalition partners”, the statement continued.
“Mansour posed a continuing imminent threat to USA personnel in Afghanistan, Afghan civilians, Afghan security forces and members of Resolute Support”, Kerry said. “It is time for Afghans to stop fighting and to start building a real future together”.
The apparent elimination of Mansour, who had consolidated power following a bitter Taliban leadership struggle over the past year, could also spark new succession battles within the fractious movement.
Jamali said documents recovered identify the men as Mohammad Azam, who was a taxi driver, and Wali Mohammad, a passenger.
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Mansour also gave Mullah Omar’s son and brother positions on the leadership council.
