The Spectator reported that a power battle inside the Taliban has severely harmed two significant figures: deputy prime minister Mullah Baradar and the group's spiritual leader Haibatullah Akhundzada. It referenced a recent confrontation between the Baradar camp and the Haqqani network during government formation talks to claim that the former was the "principal loser."
According to The Spectator, Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) commander also backed the Haqqanis, ensuring that all crucial jobs went to Pakistani supporters, primarily from the extreme Haqqani network.
The Spectator reported that "furniture as well as large thermos flasks full of hot green thrown around" during the early September fights. According to The Spectator article, Haqqani network chief Khalil-ul-Rahman Haqqani rose from his chair and began striking Baradar at one point during the meeting. Baradar had pushed for a more "inclusive" government that included non-Taliban leaders and ethnic minorities, which the rest of the world would accept.
After the fights, he went missing for a while until reappearing in Kandahar. He spoke with tribal chiefs who back him, but he was also forced to broadcast a video message on the Taliban-controlled state-run television network. According to The Spectator, the message "looked like a hostage video."
The location of Akhundzada is unknown, according to the magazine. The Spectator said, "He has not been seen or heard from for some time, and there are many rumours that he is dead,"
According to the research, the Taliban groups have been able to argue because of the vacuum at the top, which was not seen during their previous two-decade control.
Around 2016, the Taliban and the Haqqani factions combined.
Baradar and those involved in the Doha talks tried to portray the Taliban as moderates, but the Haqqanis have hailed suicide assaults. Afghanistan's minister of refugees, Khalil Haqqani, is on the UN's sanctions list and has been linked to military actions.
The Haqqanis, who take their name from the Darul Uloom Haqqania madrassa in Islamabad, is heavily embedded in Pakistan's security apparatus.
