- Afghan govt and premier spy agency claim reclusive Afghan Taliban leader died at a Karachi hospital in April 2013
- Afghan govt spokesman says Afghanistan believes that grounds for peace talks ‘are more paved now and all armed outfits should seize the opportunity’
- Afghan Taliban reject claims that their leader is dead, say ‘he is very much alive’
Afghanistan announced on Wednesday that Mullah Omar, the reclusive leader of the Afghan Taliban movement, had died more than two years ago in Karachi.
“The government … based on credible information, confirms that Mullah Mohammad Omar, leader of the Taliban died in April 2013 in Pakistan,” the Afghan presidential palace said in a statement.
“The government of Afghanistan believes that grounds for the Afghan peace talks are more paved now than before, and thus calls on all armed opposition groups to seize the opportunity and join the peace process.”
Afghanistan’s main intelligence agency also said the Taliban leader had died in a Karachi hospital in April 2013, after a BBC report earlier on Wednesday claimed that the Taliban leader had died two or three years ago.
Abdul Hassib Sediqi, the spokesman for Afghanistan’s National Directorate of Security, said Mullah Omar died in a hospital in the Pakistani city of Karachi in April 2013.
“We confirm officially that he is dead,” he told The Associated Press.
When contacted, Pakistan’s Foreign Office spokesman Qazi Khalilullah said, “We are ascertaining details in view of media reports about his [Mullah Omar’s] death.”
The White House described reports about death of the Afghan Taliban chief Mullah Mohammad Omar as “credible”.
“We are aware of the reports of the death of Mullah Omar. Without commenting on the specifics of these reports, we do believe the reports of his death are credible,” Deputy Press Secretary Eric Schultz said.
Earlier on Wednesday, a report on the BBC website quoted unnamed Afghan government sources as saying the one-eyed leader of the militant organisation had died two to three years ago.
‘MULLAH OMAR IS VERY MUCH ALIVE’:
The Afghan Taliban and sources close to the insurgent group’s mediators, who are holding talks with the Afghan government in Pakistan, however, insisted the Taliban chief is alive, according to the Voice of America.
Mullah Omar “is very much alive” and the rumours of his death are aimed at drawing out the reclusive leader, a Taliban spokesman was quoted by the VOA as saying.
Another senior Afghan government official quoting a senior Taliban leader said the leader of the Afghan Taliban had died of multiple organ failure a year and a half ago and was subsequently buried in Kandahar. He said an eight-member Taliban shura will hold a meeting to choose Omar’s successor for six months to one year. He said that there are no clear contenders at the moment but many senior Taliban leaders are being considered for the post.
Another Afghan Taliban member claimed that Mullah Omar had died eight months ago of natural causes. The Taliban member added that, “The issue of choosing the next Amirul Momineen is being resolved.” “A 20-member Shura is in control of the situation to avoid any conflict between the contending leaders,” he added.
The development comes amid the recently started peace talks between the Taliban and the Afghan government in Murree which were said to be endorsed by Mullah Omar. The peace talks hosted by Pakistan were also attended by officials from China and the US. There had been several earlier claims regarding Mullah Omar’s death, which had been rejected by the Afghan Taliban. The whereabouts of Omar remained a mystery but he was believed to be leading the Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan from hiding.
Born in 1960 in the village of Chah-i-Himmat, in Kandahar province, Mullah Omar received his early education from a seminary, according to Taliban sources.
He also fought against Soviet occupation forces in Afghanistan in 1980s during which he suffered a shrapnel injury to his right eye.
Mullah Omar was Afghanistan’s de facto head of state during their 1996-2001 rule over Afghanistan. The heavily bearded, one-eyed Omar has not been seen in public since the Taliban government in Afghanistan was toppled by US-backed Afghan forces in late 2001.
The Taliban were toppled for refusing to hand over al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden after the Sept. 11, 2001, hijacked airliner attacks on the United States. Mullah Omar had forged close ties to al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden
The US State Department had offered a $10 million bounty on his head and described him as a tall male with a shrapnel wound to the right eye.
Mullah Omar, along with several other Taliban leaders, was said to have fled to Quetta where they formed the “Quetta Shura”. Other reports had also claimed that Mullah Omar had fled to Karachi.
Later the United States had said it will not target Mullah Omar and other Taliban leaders unless they posed a direct threat to the US, following the withdrawal of US forces in Afghanistan in January this year.
