Supreme leader of Taliban may have been shot to death

The Taliban`s leader Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansour has died of gunshot wounds. He had led the Islamic fundamentalist group that has been waging a war in Afghanistan for 14 years.

China’s state-owned Xinhua News Agency cited Afghan`s high-ranking official on Friday that Sultan Faizy, a spokesman for Afghanistan`s first vice-president, said on his Twitter that Mansour was shot to death during a heated argument with his commanders a few days ago. A day earlier, Faizy also said that Mansour was injured after being shot by a commander while hosting a meeting with commanders in the vicinity of Quetta, Pakistan and was delivered to the hospital. The Hindustan Times newspaper of India also cited Amir Khan Muttaqi, former minister of information and culture under the erstwhile Taliban regime, that Mansour succumbed to his injuries while being taken to hospital on Thursday.

Some suggest a possible power struggle within the Taliban when and if Mansour turns out to be dead in four months after he became the supreme leader of the group in July. Against this backdrop, the peace negotiation that the Afghan government has been pushing forward could be also expected to have disruption.

The Taliban immediately dismissed the claim. Taliban chief spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid denied the incident, saying that Mansour was in Afghanistan, not in Pakistan. He also said that this is the act of Afghan intelligence agencies that spread these rumors about a clash between Taliban leaders.

bonhong@donga.com