| The Taliban has appointed former commander Mullah Dadullah to lead operations against US and Afghan forces in the countryâs south, a spokesman for the ousted militia said on Wednesday. The spokesman, identifying himself as Sabir Momin, said Mullah Dadullahâs appointment as operations commander had been âendorsedâ by the Talibanâs elusive leader Mullah Mohammad Omar. Momin, speaking from the southern Afghan town of Spin Boldak, told reporters in the bordering Pakistani town of Chaman by telephone that Dadullahâs nomination was proposed by a 10-member Taliban council a few days ago. Mullah Omar himself did not participate in the council meeting but he has approved the nomination of Mullah Dadullah, he said. Dadullah replaces Hafiz Abdul Rahim, who was killed along with his 14 colleagues in a US air raid on the Marouf district of the former Taliban stronghold of Kandahar in December. |