al-qaeda chief ayman al-zawahiri the coordinator 2015 part 4-1- tb-36- akhtar mohammad mansour shah...

C de Waart; CdW Intelligence to Rent [email protected] In Confidence

Al-Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri The

Coordinator 2015 Part 4-1- TB-36- Akhtar Mohammad

Mansour Shah Mohammed-12Mohammad Rasool Akhund, the newly appointed leader of a breakaway faction of the Taliban, addresses a gathering of supporters at Bakwah in the western province of Farah on November 3, 2015. Source: AFP It’s unclear how many followers the splinter group has, but Niazi’s announcement is a reflection of deep divisions among the Taliban, who have been waging war on the Kabul government for 14 years.

Breakaway group "We have elected Mullah Mohammad Rasool Akhund, as our supreme leader following a long and thoughtful discussion with our elders and mujahideens," Niazi also announced Mullah Mansoor Dadullah and Sher Mohammed Mansoor as deputies to Mullah Rasool. "We have a system, and the decision of appointment of a new leader was supposed to be taken with everyone's consent, but that did not happen. "However, we urge all our mujahideens to not focus on fighting with each other and stick to our ideologies." The High Council of Afghanistan Islamic Emirate did not specify if they would join other fighters who have pledged allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL).

A splinter group of the Afghan Taliban announced its own leader Monday, underscoring deep divisions in the insurgency following the death of its longtime emir.

The dissident faction's announcement is believed to be the first public and official split of the Afghan Taliban since the group formed in the 1990s. There was no immediate response to the announcement from the Afghan Taliban.

Fighting to reconstitute the historical Khorasan into the so-called 'Caliphate' of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the group says it has grand plans for the region, starting with uprooting the Taliban and the government of President Ashraf Ghani.

Ideological and religious differences will continue to limit ISIL's ability to recruit from Afghan Taliban.

In May 2015, all participants agreed that "the so-called Islamic State [ISIL] is alien to the tradition and the desires of the Afghan people"

The Afghan Taliban (or the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan) and ISIL are often lumped together as jihadi organisations, but their ideologies are distinct, even antagonistic.

The Taliban's leader, Mullah Akhtar Mansoor, like Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi of ISIL, uses the title "Amir al-Mu'minin" (commander of the believers). For ISIL, this title signifies authority over all (Sunni) Muslims (they consider Shia to be non-Muslim).

For Mansoor, and Mullah Omar before him, the title signifies leadership of a jihad.

Locals live in fear of Taliban taking over Afghanistan as the country witnesses a number of attacks by the armed group.

General Waziri. "It's no longer about the Islamic law, it is about power. They want to take over Afghanistan to be in power. We want them to talk to us and bring peace to the country."

The farther back you can look, the farther forward you are likely to see.–Winston Churchill

CdW Intelligence to Rent of 8 01/05/2023

mailto:[email protected]


The Afghan government is reaching out to Russia for military assistance as a result of US President Barack Obama’s "focus on limiting America’s involvement in Afghanistan," US Senator John McCain said.

Last summer, reports circulated in the Afghan and international media that Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, the mercurial leader of a faction of the Hizb-i-Islami (called Hizb-i-Islami Gulbuddin, or HIG) had thrown its support behind the Islamic State;

Hekmatyar put the controversy over the state of HIG to bed. On Oct. 15, Hizb-i-Islami neither has relations with the Islamic State, or any commitment to the group, nor has it announced any support of that group.

Afghan Taliban faction appoints new 'supreme leader'Spokesman for breakaway group tells Al Jazeera it chose Mullah Akhund after discussions with elders and mujahideens.Shereena Qazi | 05 Nov 2015 A breakaway faction of the Taliban has elected its own leader, sparking speculation over the unity of the group and its future decisions. Abdul Manan Niazi, the spokesperson for the High Council of Afghanistan Islamic Emirate, told Al Jazeera that Mullah Mohammad Rasool Akhund, a senior Taliban official, has been chosen as the group's new "supreme leader". Niazi also announced Mullah Mansoor Dadullah and Sher Mohammed Mansoor as deputies to Mullah Rasool.

The spokesperson for the High Council of Afghanistan Islamic Emirate, Abdul Manan Niazi, told journalists that a senior Taliban official, Mullah Mohammad Rasool Akhund, has been chosen as the "supreme leader" of a breakaway faction of the Taliban. "We have elected Rasool as our supreme leader following a long and thoughtful discussion with our elders and mujahideens," Mullah Niazi said. "We have a system, and the decision of appointment of a new leader was supposed to be taken with everyone's consent, but that did not happen. "However, we urge all our mujahideens to not focus on fighting with each other and stick to our ideologies." In August, Mullah Akhtar Mansoor was appointed as the new leader of the Taliban following the death of Mullah Omar, widely regarded as the founder of the Taliban. Afghan authorities announced Omar's death in August, saying he had died in a hospital in Karachi in April 2013.





Mansoor's appointment was disputed, with the Taliban Supreme Council (Shura Council) saying it had not been consulted on the matter. Niazi told Al Jazeera that Mansoor hijacked the movement because of personal greed. "We are ready for confrontation, they have to know that we have power, we have a system and elders behind us," he said."Those people telling us that our gathering is illegal, I invited Mullah Mansoor here for a talk."Taliban response Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban spokesperson, told Al Jazeera that they would not like to comment on Akhund's appointment as "there are many other things to take care of, for example the ongoing conflict in Afghanistan". "We are focusing on unity to continue our fight to bring back the Islamic law and kick our enemies out," Mujahid said. According to sources, Akhund, 50, hails from Kandahar province and was known as a "close aide and a trusted friend" of Mullah Omar. He formerly served as the governor of Nimroz and Farah province in Afghanistan. "Mullah Akhund spent most of his time with Mullah Omar and was his trusted companion," Niazi said. Many Taliban accused Mansoor of hiding Mullah Omar's death. Peace talks It is still unclear what effect Akhund's appointment might have on the future of peace talks between the Taliban and the Afghan government. A second round of peace talks were postponed after the announcement of Mullah Omar's death in August. Syed Tayeeb Agha, the head of the Taliban's political office, resigned in August soon after the appointment of Mansoor. He condemned the fact that Omar's death had been kept a secret for two years and called it a "historic mistake". Agha was regarded as the Taliban's leading negotiator in the ongoing peace talks. However, Mansoor reportedly has significant support from many members of the Taliban, especially after the groups' recent military successes in Afghanistan - particularly in Kunduz, which briefly fell to the Taliban in September. The High Council of Afghanistan Islamic Emirate did not specify if they would join other fighters who have pledged allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL).

ISIL and the Taliban Al Jazeera gains unprecedented access to ISIL's central leadership and explores the threat it poses to the Taliban.01 Nov 2015 Raising its black flag over the rugged mountainous regions of Afghanistan, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) has emerged as a new threat to the war-ravaged country as it battles the Taliban for supremacy. Employing violence and brutality to impose its will, Wilayat Khorasan, (the ancient name ISIL has chosen for the region made up of Afghanistan, Pakistan and parts of neighbouring countries), has emerged in seven different areas and vowed to step up operations, where the veteran fighters, the Taliban, once held sway. Fighting to reconstitute the historical Khorasan into the so-called 'Caliphate' of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the group says it has grand plans for the region, starting with uprooting the Taliban and the government of President Ashraf Ghani. Causing friction with the regional and overall leadership of the Taliban, armed battles have increased over the past few months with dozens of Taliban fighters killed in clashes, most notably in the Taliban stronghold of Nangarhar province. ISIL's local chapter has also managed to attract dozens of fighters from the Taliban's ranks into its fold, while foreign fighters unable to make it to Syria and Iraq have thronged to the group's territory. In ISIL and the Taliban we look at the group's growing popularity, how it made steady inroads into the country and the threat it poses for the future of Afghanistan . We gain exclusive access to ISIL's central leadership, and meet children as young as 5-years-old being trained to fight and dedicate their lives to the 'Caliphate'.





ISIL won't get very far in Afghanistan - for nowIdeological and religious differences will continue to limit ISIL's ability to recruit from Afghan Taliban.01 Nov 2015 12:32 GMT | Barnett Rubin is a leading expert on Afghanistan and South Asia. On March 25, 2015, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani told the United States Congress that Afghanistan was the "front line" against the "terrible threat" of the self-proclaimed caliphate, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). In February, the Pentagon spokesman had called ISIL's presence in Afghanistan "nascent at best", but by October, the US commander in Afghanistan, General John Campbell, said that the group had transitioned from "nascent" to "operationally emergent". It had a presence, he said, in two regions of Afghanistan: Helmand and Farah provinces in the southwest and Nangarhar in the east, along the border with Pakistan. Both leaders warned of ISIL's threat as they tried to persuade US President Barack Obama to rescind his decision to withdraw, with the exception of a training mission, all US troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2016. Hence, they had incentives to magnify the threat, however sincere their evaluation.How dangerous is the threat? We can analyse ISIL's ideology, ability to recruit, financial base, organisational capacity, and operational environment. At a track two meeting between the Taliban and other Afghans held in Doha in May 2015, all participants agreed that "the so-called Islamic State [ISIL] is alien to the tradition and the desires of the Afghan people". Some have speculated, however, that a portion of the Taliban might join ISIL out of unhappiness with the current leadership or to gain access to resources.Antagonistic ideologies The Afghan Taliban (or the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan) and ISIL are often lumped together as jihadi organisations, but their ideologies are distinct, even antagonistic. ISIL preaches a version of jihad that's a militant form of contemporary Islamist political ideology that seeks to re-establish the caliphate, a state with jurisdiction over all Muslims, and enforce a harsh version of Islamic law based on a literal interpretation of the Quran and sayings and practises of the Prophet.The Taliban, however, belong to the Deobandi school of Hanafi Islam. They accept Afghanistan as a nation-state and indeed express pride in its history. They have repeatedly said that their jihad is limited to their own country.The Taliban's leader, Mullah Akhtar Mansoor, like Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi of ISIL, uses the title "Amir al-Mu'minin" (commander of the believers). For ISIL, this title signifies authority over all (Sunni) Muslims (they consider Shia to be non-Muslim).For Mansoor, and Mullah Omar before him, the title signifies leadership of a jihad. Afghan Amir Dost Mohammad Khan took the same title in 1836 when he recaptured Peshawar from the Sikhs. The King of Morocco and the Sultan of Sokoto in Nigeria also use the title without making any claim to pan-Islamic authority. One group now in Afghanistan has recently renounced its affiliation to the Afghan Taliban and given allegiance to Baghdadi and ISIL: the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU), which Pakistan's military has pushed out of the tribal areas and into Afghanistan.The IMU has questioned the Taliban's account of Mullah Omar's death and shifted allegiance to ISIL. There is no sign yet that ISIL recognises the IMU's adherence. According to some reports, the IMU fought alongside the Taliban in the September 2015 capture of Kunduz, despite ISIL-Taliban antagonism.

Sectarian differences Ideological and religious differences have limited the ability of ISIL to recruit, even from aggrieved Afghan Taliban. Since the July 29 revelation that Mullah Omar had died in April 2013, a dispute over succession has provoked significant opposition, including from Omar's family. No Taliban leader who questioned the choice of





Mansoor as a successor has been reported to consider Baghdadi as an alternative amir.Despite differences, they have followed the advice of an open letter that Mansoor wrote to Baghdadi in April and have not created a parallel organisation. The letter accused Baghdadi of inciting divisions among Muslims and weakening jihad by trying to extend his authority to Afghanistan. The best-known exception to the rule that Afghan Taliban do not join ISIL, Abdul Rauf Khadim, proves that sectarian differences can be decisive. Khadim, whom ISIL had appointed deputy amir of Khurasan province and was killed by a drone in July 2015, had been expelled from the Afghan Taliban. While detained in Guantanamo, Khadim accepted the jihadist preaching of his Arab cellmates. The cell of ISIL formerly led by Khadim is reportedly still in southwest Afghanistan, but it does not control territory. Nearly all surviving leaders of ISIL in Afghanistan are former members of the Pakistan Taliban.

A fragmented coalition Former Pakistan Taliban members dominate ISIL's sole territorial foothold in Afghanistan, which consists of about seven districts in eastern Nangarhar province, adjacent to the Pakistan border. The ISIL leadership recognises the leaders of this area as officials of the caliphate. Hafiz Saeed, a former Pakistan Taliban member from Orakzai agency, whom Raqqa has appointed as amir of Khurasan province, is the top ISIL authority there. Saeed is aided by a few Arabic-speaking emissaries sent by ISIL central, who have also brought cash. Local Afghans report that the ISIL has more money than the Taliban (there is no government presence in the area). There was some speculation that ISIL established itself in this area to fund itself through control over the opiate trade, but instead it has decreed its signature punishment of beheading for participation in the narcotics industry.

Special brutality ISIL has brought its special brutality to eastern Afghanistan. In one case, Saeed massacred 10 elders from Achin accused of supporting the Taliban by detonating explosives on which he had forced them to sit. This incident was so egregious that his deputy, Mawlawi Abdul Rahim Muslim Dost, a former Guantanamo inmate, broke with him. The two also differed on strategy: Muslim Dost, an Afghan and former Talib, wanted to fight the Pakistan army, while Saeed, a former member of the Pakistan Taliban, argued for military offensives to capture Nangarhar and Logar provinces of Afghanistan.

At present, there is little space for ISIL to expand in Afghanistan. While Afghanistan remains in a state of civil conflict, almost all of its territory is controlled by either the government or the Taliban, both hostile to ISIL. ISIL cannot appear as in parts of Iraq, Syria, or Libya as the only force able to restore order.

Nor is there a political grievance like the political exclusion of Sunnis in Iraq and Syria looking for a champion. The Taliban occupy the armed opposition space, and they also enjoy sanctuary and support in Pakistan. It is, therefore, difficult to see an opportunity for ISIL to grow as quickly as it did in Syria and Iraq however the current stalemate evolves.But if the crises dissolve the Kabul government or the Taliban leadership, if Kabul loses the foreign assistance it needs to fund and defend the state, or if the Taliban lose their sanctuary in Pakistan and are forced back into Afghanistan without any political agreement, ISIL might find that its managed brutality will give it an advantage. In that case, the Afghan government and its international supporters will mainly have themselves to blame.

Afghans fear the rising influence of TalibanLocals live in fear of Taliban taking over Afghanistan as the country witnesses a number





of attacks by the armed group.Shereena Qazi | 12 Oct 2015 20:25 GMT | Asifa Bibi, a graduate student at Kabul University, is worried by the rising influence of the Taliban, with the armed group claiming new grounds as the US-led forces prepare to withdraw from Afghanistan. "We don't want the Taliban to take over. We don't want them at all," Bibi, 24, told Al Jazeera."Once they [Taliban] take over, they will shut down all our offices and ask us to stay home. If this happens, how will young girls go to school and get an education?"Nearly two months after Taliban appointed Mullah Akhtar Mansoor as its leader, the armed group has captured new territories in northern and eastern Afghanistan. Late last month, the armed group briefly took over the northern city of Kunduz before it was driven out from the strategic city by Afghan forces backed by US air strikes. It was the first time the Taliban made such gains in Kunduz since the US-led invasion ousted them from power in 2001. The Taliban spokesperson, Zabihullah Mujahid, has claimed that they have taken over 35 of Afghanistan's 398 districts (in 34 provinces) so far.

'It is about power' However, General Daulat Waziri, the Afghan defence ministry spokesman, told Al Jazeera that the Afghan security forces have retaken almost all of the areas from the Taliban. "If they [Taliban] fight this way, they are not doing any good to the country," said General Waziri. "It's no longer about the Islamic law, it is about power. They want to take over Afghanistan to be in power. We want them to talk to us and bring peace to the country." During the Taliban rule, women were almost nearly banned from public life, including offices and schools. The Western-backed government has since promoted pro-women policies, and as a result, many women have stepped out of their homes and joined the workforce. Bibi, who also works for a local non-profit organisation in the Afghan capital, Kabul, says her dream to promote education among young girls will collapse if the Taliban take over. Her concerns are echoed by other Afghans who fear the return of the Taliban movement will lead to more violence and adversely affect education.But Taliban spokesperson Mujahid told Al Jazeera: "Women have the right to seek education but should follow the Islamic law." "Women are supposed to be covered before they step out of their homes," he said. "We will make sure they get an education, but they cannot mingle with men whether in schools or in offices."

Pessimism But for many civilians, who had hoped for peace in the wake of Taliban's ouster more than a decade ago, pessimism has set in. "The Taliban and the government, both of them are evil and wrongdoers. I don't want either of them," said Mullahdad, a 30-year-old Kunduz resident."Only poor people are suffering and dying. I had to take out a loan to feed my family. I don't care who takes over Afghanistan and who leaves. I want to feed my children." Ghafoor Obadi, a resident of Helmand province, told Al Jazeera that he did not care about who was in the control of the country. "I want peace whether the country is under the Afghan government or the Taliban," he said.The Afghan forces currently claim full control of Kunduz and parts of Afghanistan. However, the Taliban remain strong as they continue with deadly attacks in Pashtun-dominated areas in southern and eastern parts of the country. "We don't want to be victims of this conflict. We don't want to fight. We should be living in peace and not in fear," Obadi said. "We are all scared as the future of Afghanistan doesn't look promising at the moment."

TEHRAN (FNA Oct 29 )- The Afghan government is reaching out to Russia for military assistance as a result of US President Barack Obama’s "focus on limiting America’s involvement in Afghanistan," US Senator John McCain said."As in Iraq, Syria, Ukraine, and too many other places throughout the world, President





Obama’s failed leadership is once again leaving a vacuum to be filled by our adversaries," McCain was quoted as saying by CNSNews. Earlier, US media reported that Afghanistan had requested military assistance from Russia, including attack helicopters and heavy weapons, to fight terrorism. Recently, Afghan First Vice President Abdul Rashid Dostum visited Moscow. This week, Russian ambassador to Kabul Alexander Mantytskiy confirmed that Moscow is considering a military "wish list" from Kabul. Last week, Afghan Prime Minister Abdullah Abdullah said his country would welcome any assistance in fighting terrorism. In recent weeks, Russian officials have repeatedly voiced concern about the spread of the ISIL and other terrorist groups in Afghanistan.

Hekmatyar denies Hizb-i-Islami supports the Islamic StateBY BILL ROGGIO | October 28th, 2015 | [email protected] | @billroggio

Last summer, reports circulated in the Afghan and international media that Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, the mercurial leader of a faction of the Hizb-i-Islami (called Hizb-i-Islami Gulbuddin, or HIG) had thrown its support behind the Islamic State. The reports stemmed from a newsletter purportedly distributed by HIG, entitled “A new strategy of Hizb-i-Islami Afghanistan about some Afghan groups,” which states: If there is a clash between the Taliban of the Emirate and those who have joined the Islamic State, help these militants, because the Taliban are sworn enemies of Hizb-i-Islami, because those militants have joined the Islamic State who were against the Taliban’s strategies, and because they have fought against the Hizb-i-Islami neither in the past nor now and do not intend to fight [us] in the future.A week after the statement was distributed, HIG spokesman denied that his group backed the Islamic State over the Taliban. “It was not true. None of us had issued any such statement in support of ISIS [Islamic State] in Afghanistan against the Afghan Taliban,” he told Reuters. Despite the HIG spokesman’s denial, reports persisted that HIG had or would join the Islamic State.

Earlier this month, Hekmatyar put the controversy over the state of HIG to bed. On Oct. 15, the Peshawar Daily Shahadat, an official HIG mouthpiece, released an interview with Hekmatyar, who denied “relations” with the Islamic State. Hekmatyar was directly asked if HIG “is supporting” the Islamic State:

Question: The media says that Hizb-i-Islami is supporting Islamic State. Is that true? Is there a unity among your organization and the Islamic State? While Islamic countries strongly oppose the Islamic State, what would your justification be for extending your hand to the Islamic State? Answer: Hizb-i-Islami neither has relations with the Islamic State, or any commitment to the group, nor has it announced any support of that group. Of course, Hizb-i-Islami has stated that Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State is a natural reaction against aggression and oppression in Palestine, Iraq, Syria and other Islamic countries. That reaction surfaced yesterday in the form of al Qaeda and today as the Islamic State. In case both of them break down, it will resurface in another form.This is not to say that Hekmatyar may not join the Islamic State in the future . In the past, he has been opportunistic and supported whichever jihadist faction he thinks will succeed.As an aside, it was obvious that HIG had not joined the Islamic State, as the latter never sought to publicize the relationship or welcome HIG into the Islamic State’s so-called Khorasan province, as it has done with other groups in the past. Bill Roggio is a Senior





Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Editor of The Long War Journal.

Dostum’s militias go on vandalism & mass murderIEA, JOWZJAN, Oct.27 – Having suffered a humiliating defeat at the hands of Mujahideen in Khamab district of northern Jowzjan province, the Dostum’s militias have resorted to a series of destructions, mass murder and vandalism in the region. The Dostum’s thugs went on ransacking, looting and killing spree in what is believed to be a house to house search operation in Kham. According to inhabitants, the militias burst into the homes and brazenly robbed the people of their valuables, cash, jewelry, motorbikes and so on during ransacking. Worst of all was when Dostum ordered his militias to publicly kill some people in order that the others take a lesson and stop showing sympathy towards Mujahideen. So far, over 20 innocent and helpless civilians have cold-bloodedly been murdered and several dozens wounded at the hands of Dostum militias amid a horrifying killing spree. The Islamic Emirate, hereby, condemns this act of terror by Dostum and his hoodlums and call on the media and humanitarian organizations not to close their eye to the ongoing terror by Dostum’s and stop such viciously savage person as Dostum from violence and hooliganism so as to prevent the previous history of massacre and destruction from repeating itself.




al-qaeda chief ayman al-zawahiri the coordinator 2015 part 4-1- tb-36- akhtar mohammad mansour shah...

Documents