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Mulla Agha Jan Mulla Agha Jan Taliban Afghanistan 20031113  

Afghanistan
Acting Defense Minister Says Going to Fight Abroad 'Not Jihad'
2023-08-06
Perhaps this makes more sense in the original Pashtun.
[ToloNews] The acting Minister of Defense,
...only acting in the sense that the government is not formally recognized beyond Afghan borders. Other than that, he’s as permanent as any member of a totalitarian government anywhere...
Mullah Mohammad Yaqoob Mujahid, said that if someone goes outside of Afghanistan with the intention of Jihad, his work is not called Jihad.

Yaqoob Mujahid said in a speech to the Ministry of Defense's commanders and Mujahideen that if the Amir prevents the Mujahideen from fighting but they still go to fight, then this battle is not Jihad.

Audio of Mawlawi Yaqoob Mujahid's speech was released by RTA.

"This is the Amir's [Islamic Emirate’s Leader] order, and obedience is compulsory. If a person goes outside of Afghanistan with the goal of Jihad, that person's Jihad is not called Jihad. If the Amir prevents the Mujahideen from going to battle and they still do it, this is war, not Jihad," Yaqoob Mujahid said.

The acting Minister of Defense said that the members of the Islamic Emirate should not commit an act that harms the achievements of the acting government.
Related:
Mohammad Yaqoob Mujahid: 2023-03-04 Islamic Emirate Leader Meets With Ministers, Clerics
Mohammad Yaqoob Mujahid: 2022-12-16 Islamic Emirate Member Mutasim Agha Jan Returns to Afghanistan
Mohammad Yaqoob Mujahid: 2022-01-13 Taliban Defense Minister Threatens to Put 2,000 Jihad Suicide Bombers at Afghan Embassy in DC
Link


Afghanistan
Islamic Emirate Member Mutasim Agha Jan Returns to Afghanistan
2022-12-16
[ToloNews] A famous member of the Islamic Emirate, Mutasim Agha Jan, who was working as finance minister during the first rule of the Islamic Emirate, has returned to Afghanistan.

Agha Jan returned with acting Minister of Defense Mawlawi Mohammad Yaqoob Mujahid, who was on an official visit to the UAE.

During the former government, Mutasim Afgha Jan was considered the head of the political committee of the Islamic Emirate. Agha Jan was also engaged in talks between the Islamic Emirate and the former republican government.

"I was a Taliban
...mindless ferocity in a turban...
, I am a Taliban and I will be a Taliban," he said.

Agha Jan worked as finance minister in the first round of the Islamic Emirate’s rule and was one of the senior members of the Quetta Shura
...Taliban's command center, located in Quetta, that the Pak govt hasn't been able to find since its establishment in November, 2001. Honest...
 of the Taliban’s leadership until 2010.

Agha Jan has been living in the UAE.

Aha Jan is from Kandahar province and was one of the close figures to the founder of the Islamic Emirate, Mullah Mohammad Omar Mujahid.

"May Allah give us brotherhood and intimacy to give our hands to each other and be supportive of each other instead of being enemies," Agha Jan said.

"His return will strengthen unity among the Taliban. If he is provided with a professional mission or post, he has good capability and ability," said Asif Nang, a political analyst.

"He (Agha Jan) has faced disputes and was forced to leave the front. He is still now an influential figure and the Taliban leaders respect him. I believe his return will benefit the Afghans, the Islamic Emirate and the country," said Hassan Haqyar, a political analyst.
Related:
Mutasim Agha Jan: 2015-12-06 ISI Sheltered Key Taliban Leaders Following Regime's Fall
Mutasim Agha Jan: 2014-04-15 Key Peace-Seeking Taliban Leader Missing
Related:
Agha Jan: 2020-11-16 MoI Releases List of Taliban Commanders Killed in South
Agha Jan: 2016-12-10 NYT: Wealthy Saudis Are Funding Both Sides of Taliban War
Agha Jan: 2016-09-12 Pressure growing on Taliban to join peace talks, ex-top Taliban leader
Link


Afghanistan
MoI Releases List of Taliban Commanders Killed in South
2020-11-16
[ToloNews] The Ministry of Interior Affairs on Sunday released a list of 70 Taliban
...Arabic for students...
 commanders killed in Helmand
...an Afghan province populated mostly by Pashtuns, adjacent to Injun country in Pak Balochistan...
 and Kandahar in Afghan forces operations that were carried out in response to attacks by the group that started more than a month ago.

According to the ministry, 20 of the commanders were from various parts of Helmand and were leading groups of 45 to 100 members.

Rahmatullah, Habibullah, Mawlawi Musa Jan, Qari Mohammad, Rohullah, Mullah Nek Mohammad, Atiqullah, Mullah Sardar, Mullah Anargul, Wali Mohammad, Mullah Idris, Mullah Samad, Sharifullah, Mullah Mohammad Isa and Mullah Amanullah are the Taliban commanders killed in Helmand, according to the ministry.

The list shows that 10 Taliban commanders who were killed in Helmand came from Uruzgan, Kandahar and Ghazni to help their fighters in Helmand.

The 10 commanders include Mullah Mohibullah, Mullah Shah Wali, Mullah Ishaq, Abdul Rahman, Mullah Payenda, Mullah Baridad, Mullah Juma Gul, Mullah Mustafa, Mullah Amanullah, Mullah Khairkhwah, Mullah Toryalai, Ejaz-Ul-Haq, and Badri Janan.

The data by the Ministry of Interior Affairs shows that 40 Taliban commanders were killed in Kandahar.

The commanders killed in Kandahar include Mawlawi Munir, Mullah Saifuddin, Mullah Sazuddin, Qari Labib, Mullah Talib, Mullah Sediq, Abdul Latif, Isa Mohammad, Noorullah, Ainuddin, Musa, Abdul Waris, Mullah Abdullah, Sardar Mohammad, Hamdullah, Mullah Merajuddin, Mullah Saifullah, Abrar, Mullah Zabihullah, Mawlawi Ainulhaq, Mullah Agha Jan, Mullah Saadullah, Mullah Qasim, Mullah Janan, Mullah Bashir, Ehsanullah, Mohammad Qasim, Mullah Nasib, Mullah Waliullah, Mullah Qadir, Hezbullah, Mawlawi Sabir, Mullah Nematullah, Mullah Baz Mohammad
...deputy to Taliban faction supremo Mullah Mohammad Rassoul Nowrozi...
, Mullah Neda Mohammad, Mustaghfir, Shir Ahmad, Sardar Wali, Hafiz Nematullah, and Pir Agha.

Presenting the list to news hounds, Interior Affairs Ministry’s front man said 152 Pak fighters were killed in Helmand province.

The list shows that 65 bodies of Taliban fighters were transferred across the Durand Line, 35 bodies were taken to Farah province, 54 to Helmand, 13 to Zabul and 13 bodies were taken to Uruzgan province.

At least 30 Taliban commanders were maimed in Helmand festivities, Arian said, adding that Taliban attacks were repelled by Afghan forces in Helmand, Kandahar and other southern provinces under the active defense framework.

The war in the south was led by Chief of Army Staff Gen. Mohammad Yasin Zia.

The festivities are ongoing in parts of Kandahar, Helmand and other southern provinces, but Arian said the Taliban has been defeated the southern province.

Meanwhile,
...back at the dirigible, Jack stuck the cigar in his mouth, stepped onto the gantry, and asked Got a light, Mac?

Von Schtinken stopped short, lowering the dagger and trying to control his features.

If you light that thing, Herr Armschtröng, he pointed out, his voice tense, we all die!...
 Arian said that at least 134 non-combatants were killed and 289 more were maimed in Taliban attacks in the last 25 days.

Taliban has rejected the statement by the Ministry of Interior Affairs.
Link


Afghanistan
NYT: Wealthy Saudis Are Funding Both Sides of Taliban War
2016-12-10
[BREITBART] The New York Times
...which still proudly displays Walter Duranty's Pulitzer prize...
 makes a strong case that the most important player in Afghanistan’s future is not the United States, but Soddy Arabia
...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face...
, because Saudis are funding both sides of Afghanistan’s endless civil war.
This is how you make sure you can't lose: fund both sides...
"A longtime ally of Pakistain, Saudi Arabia has backed Islamabad’s promotion of the Taliban. Throughout the years, wealthy Saudi sheikhs and rich philanthropists have also stoked the war by privately financing the Lion of Islams," the Times explains. "All the while, Saudi Arabia has officially, if coolly, supported the American mission and the Afghan government and even secretly sued for peace in clandestine negotiations on their behalf."

This results in a situation where rich Saudis can finance the Taliban, while government officials deny that any such support is officially provided. For example, former Saudi intelligence chief and ambassador to the United States Prince Turki al-Faisal insisted, "When I was in government, not a single penny went to the Taliban."

But former Taliban Finance Minister Agha Jan Motasim said his many ostensible pilgrimages to the holy cities in Saudi Arabia were actually fundraising expeditions, collecting money not only from Saudi sheikhs, but wealthy Taliban-sympathizing Moslems from other parts of the world who were also on pilgrimage.

Motasim, incidentally, became a major player in a Saudi attempt to secretly broker a peace deal between the Taliban and the Afghan government, which the New York Times describes in detail to the American public for the first time. Unfortunately, a power struggle within the Taliban and charges of embezzlement against Motasim scuttled the effort.

On top of that, the Taliban reportedly shakes down Pashtun guest workers who travel to Saudi Arabia, threatening their families with harm unless the Islamist savages get a cut of their paychecks.

Several reasons for this double Saudi game are advanced during the Times article, but the most disturbing come from what the former State Department’s Vali Nasr describes as a Saudi strategy to contain Shia Islam and its super-power, Iran, by "building a wall of Sunni radicalism across South and Central Asia."

The second most-disturbing reason: Saudi Arabia is engaged in a bidding war with Qatar
...an emirate on the east coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It sits on some really productive gas and oil deposits, which produces the highest per capita income in the world. They piss it all away on religion, financing the Moslem Brotherhood and several al-Qaeda affiliates...
 to be the dominant power in the Sunni world. The Saudis are also building a network of universities and madrasas in Afghanistan to extend their religious and cultural influence, a strategy that has pumped a great deal of money into the hands of gunnies groups ‐ some of which are making unnerving Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems....
-like noises about founding a "Caliphate." The Iranians are doing the same thing to gain influence over the Shiite population.
Reminds me of two of the Ferengi Rules of Acquisition from Deep Space Nine:

Ferengi RoA #131: Peace is good for business.
Ferengi RoA #132: War is good for business.
Oil prices are going to stay low, thanks to fracking and newly discovered deposits. How long can the two oil-fueled countries keep this up before they go broke?
Link


Afghanistan
Pressure growing on Taliban to join peace talks, ex-top Taliban leader
2016-09-12
[Khaama (Afghanistan)] A former top Taliban leader has said the group is under pressure to revive peace talks with the Afghan government months after the group rejected calls by the Afghan government to participate in direct peace talks.

Agha Jan Motasim has told the New York Times that the main motives behind growing demand to revive peace talks are latest mounting pressures and changes in the situation of the country.

Motasim was the finance minister in the Taliban regime and a close aide former Taliban leader supreme leader Mullah Mohammad Omar.

He said the Taliban leaders have agreed to revive peace talks during a meeting in Quetta city, the provincial capital of Baluchistan province of Pakistan.

According to Motasim, the feasibility of peace talks revival is high and some Taliban leaders have asked him to mediate for the launch of peace negotiations.

The Taliban group rejected to participate in direct peace talks with the Afghan government earlier this year and opted to continue to its insurgency by launching their spring offensive in mid-April.
Link


Afghanistan
Afghan Taliban optimistic about peace process, ex-senior leader says
2016-08-05
[Khaama (Afghanistan)] A former top leader of the Taliban group Agha Jan Mutasim has said the group is optimistic about grinding of the peace processor with the Afghan government.

Mutasim was serving as the minister of finance during the Taliban regime and political head of Taliban’s Quetta Council.

The remarks by Mutasim come as the group rejected the earlier calls by Quadrilateral Coordination Group (QCG) consisting of Afghanistan, Pakistain, US and China to participate in peace talks.

"Taliban are optimistic about the grinding of the peace processor and they believe China could play a key role," former Taliban minister Agha Jan Mutasim told The Express Tribune.

The latest remark by Mutasim comes as the Taliban-led insurgency has been rampant since the group announced its spring offensive in mid-April this year.

The Afghan government was expecting to participate in direct peace talks with the Taliban group earlier in March this year but the group responded the Afghan government call with deadly attacks.

Afghanistan was forced to stop peace efforts following a series of deadly attacks in the country, including a major attack on VIP protection unit in Kabul
...the capital of Afghanistan. Home to continuous fighting from 1992 to 1996 between the forces of would-be strongman and Pak ISI/Jamaat-e-Islami sock puppet Gulbuddin Hekmayar and the Northern Alliance, a period which won Hek the title Most Evil Man in the World and didn't do much for the reputations of the Northern Alliance guys either....
 that left at least 64 dead and 347 others maimed.
Link


India-Pakistan
ISI Sheltered Key Taliban Leaders Following Regime's Fall
2015-12-06
[Tolo News] Pakistain's powerful spy agency - Inter Service Intelligence (ISI) reportedly sheltered key Taliban leaders, including the group's reclusive leader Mullah Omar
... a minor Pashtun commander in the war against the Soviets who made good as leader of the Taliban. As ruler of Afghanistan, he took the title Leader of the Faithful. The imposition of Pashtunkhwa on the nation institutionalized ignorance and brutality in a country already notable for its own fair share of ignorance and brutality...
, following the U.S's military intervention in Afghanistan in 2001, government sources have confirmed.

In the second part of TOLOnews' documentary on the Taliban, government sources spoke on condition of anonymity on Mullah Mansour's rise to power.

According to them, reports indicate that Mullah Omar was initially sheltered in an ISI safe house in Chawni area of Quetta city, the capital of Balochistan
...the Pak province bordering Kandahar and Uruzgun provinces in Afghanistan and Sistan Baluchistan in Iran. Its native Baloch propulation is being displaced by Pashtuns and Punjabis and they aren't happy about it...
 province. However,
corruption finds a dozen alibis for its evil deeds...
 later on, ISI moved him to Bloody Karachi
...formerly the capital of Pakistain, now merely its most important port and financial center. It is among the largest cities in the world, with a population of 18 million, most of whom hate each other and many of whom are armed and dangerous...
, Islamabad and Lahore.

During his time in Pakistain, the only person Mullah Omar was allegedly in contact with was current Taliban leader Mullah Akhter Mansour - along with one other person named Azizullah -- who allegedly worked as the link between the two commanders.

Based on the reports, Mullah Omar had been put into isolation by Mullah Mansour and even close relatives of the reclusive leader were not able to see him without first getting permission from Mullah Mansour. Loyalists to Mullah Omar believe that he was suffering from depression during his last days -- this because of his isolation.

Sources said it is also believed that Mullah Mansour hid Mullah Omar's death for two years and that only two other top Taliban figures were aware of his demise. These included former Taliban supreme court chief Sheikh Haibatullah and the link person Azizullah.

After news broke of Mullah Omar having died two years earlier, Mullah Mansour quickly ordered the dismissal of the head of the military commission of Taliban - a decision that reportedly sparked major criticism among the group's loyalists. This is widely seen to have been the catalyst to the current friction between the two groups.

"Several foreign intelligence services planned to create friction and disunity between the Taliban and these spy agencies extended efforts in recent months to accomplish the task. The role of foreign intelligence agencies and ethnic issues within the Taliban finally split them," former Taliban deputy minister of mines Hassan Haqyar said in reference to the divided Death Eater group.

Sidelining Mullah Omar and then hiding his death; accusations against Mullah Mansour about the detention of Mullah Beradar Akhund, deputy of Mullah Omar by Pak forces; the reported murder of Mullah Dadullah, Mullah Raqeeb and Mullah Obaidullah and a failed liquidation attempt on Mutasim Agha Jan in Karachi are apparently fundamental issues that prevented the Taliban in general from announcing allegiance to Mullah Mansour, said sources.

The division within the Taliban leadership reportedly grew further after Mullah Mansour announced himself as successor to Mullah Omar without seeking the vote from the Quetta Shura
...Mullah Omar's command center, located in Quetta, that the Pak govt hasn't been able to find since its establishment in November, 2001. Honest...
Many within the group have accused Mullah Mansour of corruption, having ties with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp (IRGC) and especially ties with the Pak intelligence service, said the sources. Critics have even called him an ISI puppet.

On the other hand, Taliban fighters loyal to Mullah Mansour also lodged complaints against him, accusing him of having links to Daesh [Islamic State].

"A third Taliban faction has yet to announce its existence. But this faction will be mostly political, and ideologically it would be the most stable faction of the Taliban comprised of Maulavi Abdul Jalil, former deputy foreign minister of Taliban, Mullah Hassan Rahmani, former governor of Kandahar, Mullah Hassan Babur, former minister of foreign affairs including Mullah Abdul Razqa ... [a faction that] maintains major influence among Taliban," military analyst Jawed Kohistan
...a backwoods district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa distinguished by being even more rustic than is the norm among the local Pashtuns....
i said.
Link


Arabia
Former Taliban deputy minister detained in Dubai
2015-10-21
[Khaama (Afghanistan)] A former deputy minister of the regime of Taliban has been detained in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Reports suggest that Abdul Rahman Zahid, the deputy foreign minister of Taliban regime, was placed in durance vile
Drop the heater, Studs, or you're hist'try!
 after landing at Dubai International Airport last month.

According to reports, Zahid was not directly involved in the Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan but had contacts with the group's political office in Qatar
...an emirate on the east coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It sits on some really productive gas and oil deposits, which produces the highest per capita income in the world. They piss it all away on religion, financing the Moslem Brotherhood and several al-Qaeda affiliates...
 and some other Taliban capos in Pakistain.

UAE government has said that Zahid, who also had international links, might have held meetings without prior permission.

An official has told Pajhwok news agency on the condition of anonymity Zahid had increased interaction with the Afghan government and his arrest might be a joint effort of the spy networks of the UAE and Pakistain.

Neither Taliban nor Afghan government has commented on the report.

But Motasim Agha Jan who was a high-ranking official of the Taliban was also anonymously arrested in UAE while he was supporting a peace deal between Taliban and Afghan government. He was later set free.
Link


Afghanistan
Taliban commander among seven detained in Kandahar
2015-08-09
[Khaama (Afghanistan)] The National Directorate of Security
...the Afghan national intel agency...
 (NDS) -- Afghanistan's intelligence agency has detained a group of seven Taliban in southern Kandahar province.

A statement issued by the NDS on Saturday states that the group was functioning under the command of Hussain Shah alias Maulawi Agha in the jurisdiction of Kandahar city, the province's capital.

The six others are identified as Shams-ur-Rahman alias Agha Jan S/O Jan Mohammad, Yar Mohammad S/O Khan Mohammad, Abdul Bari S/O Shah Gul Agha, Baran Shah Agha S/O Sakhi Agha, Sayed Mohammad S/O Taj Mohammad, Khan Mohammad S/O Agha Mohammad.

NDS statement adds that all of the members of this group belong to Kandahar province and were detained red handed with 25 kilograms of kabooms, 3 bombs and other terrorist materials.

Press released from NDS office usually do not contain exact date of the achievements but they come after recent activities.

Link


Afghanistan
Balkh becomes northern haven for Afghan refugees
2015-07-09
[RFE/RL] Tens of thousands of Afghans have fled their homes in northern Afghanistan in the face of a fierce offensive by the Taliban. Many have sought refuge in Balkh Province, the last oasis of relative peace in the region.

Governor Atta Mohammad Noor, a powerful former warlord, has run the province with an iron fist for the past 12 years, making the it one of the most stable and prosperous in the country. Balkh's stability has also been a major focus of NATO forces, due to its strategic location.

Migration officials estimate the number of internally displaced persons in Balkh to be as high as 20,000.

Taliban fighters conducted a major spring offensive in northern Afghanistan, which had been relatively stable compared with the south and east of the country. But now, battles are raging across the area.
Even Balkh has not been shielded from the increasing violence.

In several districts, the Taliban is waging war with Afghan soldiers and pro-government militias, causing residents to flee to Mazar-e Sharif and its surrounding areas.

Agha Jan, an elderly farmer from Chimtal district, said, "So many of our people were killed and taken. We had to leave our area. Eighteen people were killed by the Taliban in our village alone."

Jan says they were not only being targeted by the Taliban, but were also being preyed upon by pro-government militias. He said, "During the day, the Taliban would beat us up and ransack our homes. During the night, it was the militias' turn."
Link


Afghanistan
Kunar Residents Forced to Evacuate Homes
2014-08-28
[Tolo News] Pakistain's military shelling has forced hundreds of displaced families to seek refuge in the districts of eastern Nangarhar
The unfortunate Afghan province located adjacent to Mohmand, Kurram, and Khyber Agencies. The capital is Jalalabad. The province was the fief of Younus Khalis after the Soviets departed and one of his sons is the current provincial Taliban commander. Nangarhar is Haqqani country..
 province leaving behind their native areas and homes.

Reports illustrate that many from Kunar's districts of Dangam and Shegal have settled or are searching for safe shelters in the districts of Behsud and Kama located in eastern Nangarhar.

"We have been under Pak rocket attacks for the last three years," said Agha Jan, one of the many people forced to flee his native town. "The attacks continue to force us to evacuate our homes."

Residents are weary of the constant sacrifices they are forced to make, warning that mass demonstrations will be held if the responsible organs do not prevent such attacks.

"If the Pak military attacks continue, we will demand our rights by taking part in protests," Fazel, another displaced resident, exclaimed.

In just the past two days, according to local officials, 100 missiles have been fired on two districts of Kunar.

The districts of Kunar are located alongside the Pak border and have been under attack for the past three years, but in recent months the number of attacks has increased dramatically with reports indicating that roughly 50 rockets, if not more, are fired onto the districts of Kunar.
Link


Afghanistan
Mutasem to be Transferred
2014-04-22
[Tolo News] Former Taliban leader Mutasem Agha Jan who was reportedly brought to Kabul on Saturday after being detained in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) under murky circumstances last week will be transferred to Turkmenistan, a member of the Afghan High Peace Council (AHPC) said. There is no official statement out yet detailing the transfer of Mutasem.

Mutasem is part of a last ditch effort by the Hamid Maybe I'll join the Taliban Karzai
... A former Baltimore restaurateur, now 12th and current President of Afghanistan, displacing the legitimate president Rabbani in December 2004. He was installed as the dominant political figure after the removal of the Taliban regime in late 2001 in a vain attempt to put a Pashtun face on the successor state to the Taliban. After the 2004 presidential election, he was declared president regardless of what the actual vote count was. He won a second, even more dubious, five-year-term after the 2009 presidential election. His grip on reality has been slipping steadily since around 2007, probably from heavy drug use...
 administration to get peace talks on track before Afghanistan's new president is elected.

Mutasem's disappearance was just one of a number of challenges that beset efforts at reconciliation with the Taliban. According to some reports, Mutasem has been excommunicated by the Taliban, who have shown little interest in negotiating with Karzai and the High Peace Council (HPC). A number of analysts have now suggested that Pak intelligence has actively tried to derail negotiations, by attacking and arresting Taliban leaders interested in talks.

"Most of the people who wanted to take part in the peace talks were killed by the intelligence agency of Pakistain," military analyst Atiqullah Amarkhail said on Sunday.

Kabul has long implored Islamabad to help in efforts to negotiate with Taliban leaders, many of which are thought to reside in Pakistain, but little if any tangible aid has ever been given. Most in Afghanistan still see Pakistain as the Taliban's key patron.
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