[REUTERS] The Taliban have chosen late supreme leader Mullah Omar... a minor Pashtun commander in the war against the Soviets who made good as leader of the Taliban. As ruler of Afghanistan, he took the title
Leader of the Faithful. The imposition of Pashtunkhwa on the nation institutionalized ignorance and brutality in a country already notable for its own fair share of ignorance and brutality...
's longtime deputy to replace him, two turban commanders said on Thursday, as Pakistain announced that peace talks between the
Pakistain cited reports of Omar's death as the reason for the delay in negotiations, amid fears they could trigger a potentially bloody succession battle and further deepen divisions within the turban movement.
Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansour was appointed leader at a meeting of the Taliban's top representatives, many of whom are based in the Pak city of Quetta, according to the sources who were present at the shura, or gathering.
"The shura held outside Quetta unanimously elected Mullah Mansour as the new emir of the Taliban," said one commander at the Wednesday night meeting.
"The shura will release a statement shortly."
Siraj Haqqani, leader of the powerful Haqqani turban faction, will be a deputy to Mansour, both commanders added.
Mansour will be only the second leader the Taliban have had, because Omar, an elusive figure rarely seen in public, founded the ultra-conservative Islamist movement in the 1990s.