Eminent expert on Afghanistan, Ahmad Rashid on Wednesday said the news of Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Omar’s death could result in stalling of the peace process between the Afghan government and the Taliban, as Taliban outfits would be in a state of confusion as to who will be determining their representation on the negotiating table in Omar’s absence.
Talking to Pakistan Today Editor Arif Nizami on his talks show DNA on Channel 24, Ahmad Rashid said the first round of talks in Murree had revealed internal rifts within the Afghan Taliban and they had subsequently broken into three-four factions.
“With the news of Mullah Omar’s death surfacing just two days before the second round of talks scheduled to be held in Murree, questions will rise in Afghanistan as to why Afghanistan and the US kept this news secret for all these years,” he said.
“Although Mullah Omar wasn’t liked much in Afghanistan, young Taliban might look towards the Islamic State (or Dae’sh) which will strengthen the ultra-extremist movement in the region,” he said.
Commenting on the killing of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi leader Malik Ishaq in Punjab’s Muzaffargarh district, Rashid said that a large number of LeJ militants were embedded with the Afghan Taliban in Afghanistan and the killing of the dreaded terror chief shows a paradigm shift in the Pakistani establishment, especially keeping the proposed China-Pakistan trade corridor in mind.
