Taliban to announce new Afghan government soon, says 'technical issues' still remain

Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid on September 6 said that the group will announce a new government in Afghanistan soon. While speaking at a press conference, Mujahid informed that the decision-making process on the formation of a new government in Afghanistan has been complete, with some “technical issues” remaining. In a separate statement, another Taliban spokesperson Ahmadullah Muttaki also said that the preparation for the announcement of the new Afghan government’s formation has been completed. 

Mujahid said, “Final decisions have been taken, we are now working on the technical issues. We will announce the new government as soon as the technical issues are resolved”. 

The Taliban has said that the new government will be an “inclusive” one. However, the group has been delaying the formation of the new government since the fall of Kabul on August 15. Earlier, reports claimed that the government formation has been delayed due to differences between the Taliban and the Haqqani network over power-sharing.  

There has been a power struggle between two senior leaders - Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar and Anas Haqqani. The disagreement has mostly been on the way the group handles the resistance forces in Panjshir valley. Previously, Khalil Haqqani, who is a member of a committee constituted by the Taliban to negotiate talks over the formation of the government, said the Taliban's bid to form a broad-based government in Kabul is causing the delay.

NRF refutes Taliban's victory in Panjshir

Meanwhile, there have been conflicting reports of Panjshir. While the Taliban claims that the province has been captured, the National Resistance Forces (NRF), on the other hand, has denied the Taliban’s claim and stated that it is false. The Resistance Force has said that its fighters are still present in all strategic positions across the Panjshir Valley to continue the fight. The NRF has also assured that the resistance will continue to fight against the Taliban and its 'partners'.

In a recent audio message, NRF leader Ahmad Massoud called for a national uprising against the Taliban and the Pakistani elements who have joined them. He said that the Taliban has not changed, but has become "far more radical than in the past”. He has also asked for support from the international community. 

(With inputs from ANI)