[DAWN] The new leader of the Afghan Taliban, Mullah Mansoor, called for unity in a message released on Tuesday to mark the coming Eidul Azha, but a rival faction issued its own statement calling for a new leadership vote.The competing messages come days after a group of dissident Taliban capos denounced Mansoor's recent appointment to replace the Death Eater group's late 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...
.
Divisions within the Taliban have threatened to derail fledgling peace talks with the Afghan government and allow the Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling
Allaharound with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not
reallyMoslems....
group to expand its foothold in the region.
Mansoor was hastily appointed Taliban leader in July after Afghan intelligence leaked the news that the reclusive Omar had been dead for more than two years. Mansoor was Omar's deputy.
Some Taliban capos oppose Mansoor, blaming him for concealing news of Omar's death, and describe his appointment as irregular.
Mansoor, however, said the divisions were a creation of the enemy.
"The creation of different groups ... is the last conspiracy of the invaders for continuation of the American proxy war in Afghanistan," he said in the Eid message.