Saleh claims Haqqani network runs Afghan's finance ministry, wants largest share in it

The former Vice President of Afghanistan, Amrullah Saleh claimed that the finance ministry is in the hands of the Haqqani network, which is a terrorist organisation in Pakistan, as per the reports of Khaama Press. According to him, the network also wants the majority stake in the ministry. He went on the microblogging site Twitter and said that they had not discussed the plight of the poor in their meetings.

Adding to it, Saleh further said that Taliban leaders in Kabul have been unable to fund their militants thus far. He made the comments at a time when the UN has also warned of a terrible famine in Afghanistan, predicting that over three million Afghans will face major food shortages this winter. Saleh's words have elicited no response from the Taliban.

Amrullah Saleh's reaction to Pakistani Foreign Minister's visit

Recently on Friday, October 22 Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi visited Afghanistan. Amrullah Saleh reacted to his visit and said that Afghanistan is too huge to be absorbed by Pakistan, also noted the implications of Islamabad's two-and-a-half-month occupation of Afghanistan. Saleh stated in a series of tweets that resistance in all forms is the only way to protect Afghan dignity and end Pakistan's occupation of the country.

On an unannounced visit to Kabul, Pakistani Foreign Minister Mahmood Qureshi and ISI chief Lt Gen Faiz Hameed met with Taliban commanders and pledged to send Rs 500 crore in humanitarian aid to the Afghan people. Qureshi visited with Afghan Prime Minister Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund under the Taliban rule, emphasising Pakistan's desire for long-term peace and stability in the nation. According to Qureshi, Islamabad is committed to assisting the Afghan people in overcoming their economic difficulties.

More about the Haqqani Network

The Haqqani Network was founded by Jalaluddin Haqqani, a top Afghan warlord and guerrilla commander during the anti-Soviet insurgency. He was a part of the Hezb-e Islami faction, which was led by Younis Khalis, a well-known mujahideen commander. Jalaluddin became the Taliban's Minister of Tribal and Border Affairs when they took control of Afghanistan in the mid-to-late 1990s.

The Haqqani Network is based in Pakistan's North Waziristan and operates in Afghanistan's eastern provinces and Kabul. According to the National Intelligence office, because of its role in the Afghan insurgency, assaults on US military and civilian personnel, and attacks on Western interests in Afghanistan, as well as its affiliations to the Taliban and al-Qa'ida, the US government recognised the Haqqani Network as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation in 2012.

Image: AP