Taliban Divisions Laid Bare As Power Struggle Intensifies – Analysis

Mustafa Sarwar and Frud Bezhan

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(RFE/RL) — The Taliban has for years presented a united front to the outside world and kept a tight lid on dissent within its ranks.

But unprecedented displays of discord have laid bare the rifts in the secretive militant group and exposed an intensifying power struggle.

The internal divisions could spill over into violence, experts warn, and trigger a new civil war that would further destabilize the volatile region.

“Despite a culture of secrecy and unity, recently there have been public shows of disunity,” said Michael Semple, a former EU and UN adviser to Afghanistan. “These suggest that the movement is under real strain.”

‘Chaotic And Uncertain’

In December, the Taliban’s Refugees Minister Khalil Haqqani was killed in a suicide bombing. He is the most senior official to be killed since the hard-line Islamist group seized power in 2021.

Privately, most of Haqqani’s supporters accused his rivals in the Taliban of ordering his assassination, according to experts.