Afghan Taliban leader injured in firefight

Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mansour has been injured in a shootout between senior members of the outlawed movement, according to Taliban sources.

Five senior Taliban members died on the spot and more than a dozen, including Mullah Mansour, suffered serious bullet injuries in Quetta in western Pakistan, a Taliban source claimed. “This is totally baseless”, Zabihullah Mujahid said.

The incident, statement said, once again exposed the nature of war imposed by terrorist groups and proves their “organisation and centres are located outside Afghan borders”.

The sources differed on the location of the confrontation, with the insurgents saying it took place near Kandahar, the main city of southern Afghanistan and the birthplace of the Taliban, while other sources said it was in the Pakistani city of Quetta, a historic Taliban refuge.

News of his death disrupted fledgling peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban.

Frequent clashes between Mansoor’s faction and another tied to Mullah Mohammad Rasool Akhund have divided the group at a time when the “Islamic State” is making inroads into Afghanistan.

However, Taliban spokesman Mullah Yousaf Ahmadi had denied the death of Mullah Akhtar, 92 News reported.

“Both leaders agreed to work with all those who would enter such a process as legitimate political actors and act, alongside the Afghan government, against those who refuse to take the path of peace”, the statement said.

Some Taliban leaders then met to appoint Mansour, one of Omar’s deputies, as the new Taliban leader.

“During the discussion, some senior people developed differences and they opened fire at each other”, a senior Taliban commander said.

The dynamic is complicated by the fact that the Taliban is considering entering into peace talks with the United States and the government in Kabul.

After Mansour was named Omar’s successor, another key Taliban leader, Mullah Rasool, announced a rival leadership group that was challenging Mansour’s rule. The gunfire, which sources told the BBC seemed to be spontaneous and not an organized attack, comes two years after the death of Taliban founder Mullah Omar.

Mullah Mansour responded by sending hundreds of Taliban to battle Mullah Dadullah’s forces in Zabul Province, and there has been heavy fighting there.