Ahmed Masood declares allegiance to the Taliban.(Ababil Islamic news)

 

Ahmed Masood declares allegiance to the Taliban

The Taliban have demanded progress in their talks aimed at ensuring security across the country since the formation of an inclusive government in Afghanistan and the capture of the capital Kabul last weekend. Their claim indicates that the risk of civil war in the country could be reduced.

The statement came hours after Taliban co-founder Mullah Abdul Gani Baradar arrived in Kabul on Saturday. There, senior militia commanders were already in talks with jihadi leaders and politicians to form a government. Baradar left Qatar for Afghanistan on Tuesday after successfully concluding an agreement with the United States in Doha last year. He first visited Kandahar, the second largest city in Afghanistan. Within hours of his return, the group announced that their rules would be "different."

So far, they have given some details about who will form their government. Within hours of Baradar's arrival in Kabul, pro-Taliban social media accounts showed Khalil Haqqani, one of America's most wanted men, whose head was valued at  5 million - the son of Ahmad Shah Masood, Afghanistan's most famous anti-Taliban fighter Masood has declared allegiance to the movement.

Masood earlier this week pleaded with the United States to supply arms to his resistance movement in the Panjshir Valley, northeast of Kabul, saying he wanted to follow in the footsteps of his father, Ahmad Shah Masood. His call raised fears of a civil war in Afghanistan. Although Masood made no statement on Haqqani's announcement, his aides said talks with the Taliban were still ongoing.

The Taliban and other Afghan political leaders are continuing their talks on forming a new government, a senior Taliban official told Reuters, adding that the structure of the new government is relied upon to be declared in the following not many days. "The Taliban's legal, religious and foreign policy experts are working to prepare the structure," he said, adding that the Taliban would announce the new government in the next few days. Source: Tribune.