Appointment of ‘younger’ deputy shows Mullah Omar in no mood of reconciliation

NEW YORK - The Taliban warlord Mullah Omar’s decision to replace his trusted deputy Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, who was arrested in Pakistan in January, with a more tough fighter, Mullah Abdul Qayyum Zakir, suggests that the outlawed outfit is in no mood for reconciliation and would continue fighting against the international forces led by the United States in the war tattered country.

Zakir, a former detainee at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, who is believed to be in his mid-30s, has a reputation of being a tough fighter with few political skills, The New York Times reports.

American officials believe that the Taliban leadership is still ‘brimming’ with confidence about their position inside Afghanistan, and it is unlikely that Omar would enter into any peace talks either with the Karzai government or with the international community led by the United Nations (UN) and the US.

“The Taliban still believe they are winning and can wait us out. They are not inclined to accept a bargain,” the newspaper quoted one senior American intelligence official, as saying.

However, the recent arrests of scores of Taliban leaders across Pakistan has rattled the outfit to an extent, the paper notes.

According to Waheed Muzhda, a former Taliban official in Kabul, Zakir’s appointment by Omar as his deputy was a move which was taken in a hurry without consulting the leadership council (shura), which reflects that the extremist leadership is ‘nervous’ of holding large gatherings for fear of arrests. (ANI)