Taleban rift ignites power struggle over who controls the insurgency(fmr Guantanamo detainee)

The Times(UK) ^ | 04/23/10 | Jerome Starkey

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April 23, 2010

Taleban rift ignites power struggle over who controls the insurgency

Jerome Starkey in Kabul

Two of the Taleban’s most senior military commanders are involved in a bitter power struggle, which insiders claim has split the insurgents’ leadership council and could turn violent in parts of southern Afghanistan.

The commanders are vying for military control of the insurgency, district elders and mid-level Taleban commanders have told The Times.

Mullah Abdul Qayyum Zakir and Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansoor were both named as the successors to Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taleban’s second in command, who was arrested in Pakistan in February.

Mullah Zakir, according to reports at the time, was given responsibility for military operations, while his rival was put in charge of logistics. District elders in Helmand said that Mullah Mansoor was disappointed not to get his former leader’s operational role, referred to as the Taleban’s defence minister.

“When Mullah Baradar was arrested, Mullah Mansoor thought he would be his replacement,” the elder with links to the insurgency said. “When Zakir was introduced as the defence minister, [Mansoor] was disappointed.”

Tensions are reportedly highest in central Helmand, where British troops are based and where fighters loyal to both men massed before Operation Moshtarak, the US, British and Afghan offensive to clear the insurgents out.

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Mullah Zakir is a former detainee at the American detention facility at Guantánamo Bay in Cuba who was released in December 2007. He quickly rejoined the insurgency.

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Mullah Zakir is a former detainee at the American detention facility at Guantánamo Bay in Cuba who was released in December 2007. He quickly rejoined the insurgency.