Death Reported Of Mullah Omar

[Scepticalscribe]

Death Reported Of Mullah Omar:

On Wednesday, (July 29), the death of Mullah Omar was reported - initially from sources in Pakistan - and was subsequently confirmed by spokespersons for the Afghan Government.

Of course, his death had been rumoured for years, not least because the reclusive leader hadn't been seen in public for over a decade. It was suggested that he had died of tuberculosis over two years ago.

Of equal interest, is the fact that a statement, issued at Eid (the end of the Ramadan/Ramazan fasting period) purporting to come from Mullah Omar, had welcomed the very tentative talks and uncertain overtures - promoted by China, the US, and, somewhat more ambivalently, by Pakistan, - that had been taking place between elements of the Taliban and the Afghan Government.

Before this announcement, strain and tensions had become increasingly evident between Taliban commanders in the field and those ensconced in exile in Pakistan over the future direction of the movement, with some of the leaders less inclined to continue the armed struggle, while those in the field see potential military gains in Government weakness and the international drawdown and wish to maximise their position in advance of any talks.

Already, the movement is showing splits between a number of radicals - some of whom have rebadged themselves under the banner of IS citing a lack of radicalism in the Taliban, and those who are prepared to contemplate the bare beginnings of negotiations with the Afghan authorities under the new administration of President Ashraf Ghani.

However, even within the Taliban, adding further to an already divided organisation, is the fact that further tensions are becoming evident between the family of Mullah Omar, including his son, and his long time deputy, Mullah Akhtar Mansour, as to who shall succeed him and win the allegiance of the loosely structured groups and body known as the Taliban.

The Taliban are not only fighting the current Government of Afghanistan; in some regions, they are fighting radicals who claim allegiance to the banner of IS, arguing that the Taliban vision for Afghanistan (a radical Islamic state entirely free of foreign influence) lacks ambition and is painfully limited.

Given how the death of a great many witless celebrities - many of whom, as I am not from the US, I have never heard of - will almost always give rise to a thread, I am a little surprised that the reported death of Mullah Omar has excited next to no comment to date.

 

[aaronvan]

Weird, now I'm reading that Haqqani is dead, too. Something is up.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Weird, now I'm reading that Haqqani is dead, too. Something is up.

Yes. Interesting times, indeed.

Again, there appears to have been a gap in time between the actual death (apparently of natural causes) of Jalaluddin Haqqani and the formal reporting of it. It is interesting that some of the local media are carefully placing inverted commas around the reported verb 'has died'.

 

[JamesMike]

It is interesting that he passed away in a Karachi hospital.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

It is interesting that he passed away in a Karachi hospital.

Very.

It is also interesting to note that the formal, official report of his death has occurred just now, although his actual demise (and this fact does not appear to be in dispute) is thought to have occurred over two years ago.

 

[JamesMike]

Very.

It is also interesting to note that the formal, official report of his death has occurred just now, although his actual demise is thought (and this fact does not appear to be in dispute) to have occurred over two years ago.

He picked a good hospital, the Aga Khan hospital, which also happens to be in Nairobi, Kenya.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

He picked a good hospital, the Aga Khan hospital, which also happens to be in Nairobi, Kenya.

To be honest, I would also query his state of health, and, indeed, his capacity for autonomous and independent living and agency for a number of years prior to his death.

This is a death that had been rumoured for years, so it comes at no real surprise, but the timing of the announcement does strike me as rather interesting.

As for the Aga Khan, I don't doubt that any hospital funded by, or named after, the Aga Khan, would be very well equipped and run. Not only is the Aga Khan himself unusually comfortable in strict financial terms, but the requirement in Islam (one of the five pillars) to 'give to charity' might also serve as a form of motivation for the funding of a number of such hospitals across the continents of Africa and central and south east Asia.

 

[aaronvan]

It is interesting that he passed away in a Karachi hospital.

No surprise, there. Pak General Staff was probably at his bedside

 

[Scepticalscribe]

No surprise, there. Pak General Staff was probably at his bedside

The tender and thoughtful bedside manner was more likely cultivated by the ISI, rather than by the General Staff…….

 

[Scepticalscribe]

And now, it appears that there are growing tensions within the organisation known as the Taliban surrounding the succession, as members of Mullah Omar's family and his former number two, who has (for now) claimed to succeed him, Mullah Akhtar Muhammad Mansur (sometimes spelt Mansour).

But this is not the only division; some field commanders resent the distant strategists - a pattern seen in every organisation patterned along military lines.

Some don't want talks of any description with the Afghan Government. Others are prepared to hold talks, but from the Taliban office in Qatar, rather than one in Islamabad. And, then, there is the old Quetta Shura, the HQ of the staff of the Taliban organisation based in Islamabad, whom some hold to be just a bit closer to the ISI than might be considered wholly compatible with a fully independent and autonomous stance.

 

[phrehdd]

Glad he is gone. Hope those serving him and the Taliban also meet their end soon. Between the butchery, on and off ties with Al Qaeda and the wretched abuse of women... they wont be missed by those that celebrate life rather than death.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Glad he is gone. Hope those serving him and the Taliban also meet their end soon. Between the butchery, on and off ties with Al Qaeda and the wretched abuse of women... they wont be missed by those that celebrate life rather than death.

Believe me, I am not grieving at the news of his passing.

In Kabul, depending on the perspective of the source, some are celebrating while others - a minority - mourn.

What is interesting is that this news - which had long been rumoured - has only been made public - and confirmed - now. One may wonder why.

And secondly, leaving aside the insurgency (which is clearly getting worse), and leaving aside that the Taliban and the putative beginnings of Daesh/IS are fighting each other where their activities and ambitions intersect and collide - it is almost inevitable that this is going to lead to a major division, if not outright split, in the Taliban.

 

[ucfgrad93]

Can't say that I'm sorry to see that he is taking the long dirt nap.

 

[phrehdd]

Believe me, I am not grieving at the news of his passing.

In Kabul, depending on the perspective of the source, some are celebrating while others - a minority - mourn.

What is interesting is that this news - which had long been rumoured - has only been made public - and confirmed - now. One may wonder why.

And secondly, leaving aside the insurgency (which is clearly getting worse), and leaving aside that the Taliban and the putative beginnings of Daesh/IS are fighting each other where their activities and ambitions intersect and collide - it is almost inevitable that this is going to lead to a major division, if not outright, in the Taliban.

This is akin to days of yore in the Muslim world and before, when either division occurs or a major force is over taken by yet another and they merge or kill without mercy the opposing side.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

This is akin to days of yore in the Muslim world and before, when either division occurs or a major force is over taken by yet another and they merge or kill without mercy the opposing side.

Not just elements of (and by no means all) of the Muslim world, but of terrorist/insurgent/'freedom fighter' movements world wide.

There is always a clash between those who realise that they cannot win (but cannot be defeated) and seek to inch matters (and minds) towards a negotiated solution. However, negotiated solutions imply compromise, and endless arguments over what areas are open to compromise and where you must hold firm. And, when the movement is based on a belief system, or an ideology, strength of belief matters, too.

Others may tire of the fighting and seek an end to it, as long as the peace is deemed 'honourable'. And yet others may see any attempt to negotiate with former enemies and opponents a sign of weakness, and evidence of a lack of fervour on the part of their own elites.

Add to this the emergence of IS, and the endless meddling of Pakistan, (seeking influence and paralysis in Afghanistan as a means of countering Indian influence and power in the region) and the situation is a lot more fraught than might have seemed to have been the case at first sight.