United Nations: Afghanistan’s Taliban-appointed interior minister Sirajuddin Haqqani is reportedly seeking to take under his control the most promising economic projects, primarily the construction of the Afghan section of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India gas pipeline, a UN report has said.
The 14th report of the Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team of the 1988 Taliban Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council said discord among Taliban officials over the distribution of positions in the de facto state apparatus and provincial administrations is “significant”.
It added that while first deputy PM Mullah Baradar has “less influence” in government, he retains the support of southern provincial administrations. Baradar is seeking to control the process for the Taliban gaining international recognition, unfreezing Afghan assets abroad and expanding foreign assistance.
“The conflict revolves around competition for positions in government and control of financial and natural resources and channels for smuggling commercial goods,” the report said.
The UN report added that the friction within the Taliban leadership has been overtaken by growing frustrations with the direction of the de facto authorities, in particular around the centralisation of power in Kandahar and over key policy decisions, such as the ban on girls’ education. It noted that the principal split within the Taliban leadership lies between factions representing Kandahar and Kabul power bases.
It added that the Taliban’s relations with al-Qaida remain a “source of both unity and division”. The killing of al-Qaida leader Aiman al-Zawahiri last year in Kabul left some Taliban mistrustful, believing they had been deceived over the presence of the al-Qaida leader.