The Taliban were successful in taking over Afghanistan. The talks of a new Afghanistan force are in order while Haibatullah Akhundzada will remain in charge. Here’s the full story
New Afghanistan force in the making?
A new Afghanistan force may come to the surface shortly. The takeover was recent, but the country will see several new changes with talks and decision-making in progress. “The Taliban would also reach out to former pilots and soldiers from the Afghan armed forces to join its ranks,” said Waheedullah Hashimi. Hashmi is a senior Taliban commander and has access to the group’s decision-making.
However, the success of military recruitment is still in question. Over years, thousands of soldiers from the former Afghanistan forces have lost their lives or faced severe injuries at the hands of Taliban insurgents. Additionally, the Taliban targeted US-trained Afghan pilots in recent times. However, the new forces will be made up of Taliban soldiers.
“Most of them have got training in Turkey and Germany and England. So we will talk to them to get back to their positions. Of course, we will have some changes, to have some reforms in the army, but still, we need them and will call them to join us,” said Hashimi. “We have contact with many pilots. And we have asked them to come and join, join their brothers, their government. We called many of them and are in search of (others’) numbers to call them and invite them to their jobs.”
More on Afghan’s military power structure
The new military power structure in Afghanistan will mostly bear similarities to that of the last time when the Taliban were in power. During their rule between 1996 and 2001, Mullah Omar, the former supreme leader stayed in the shadows. The day-to-day affairs were run by a council. However, “Akhundzada would likely play a role above the head of the council, who would be akin to the country’s president,” added Hashimi.
“Maybe his [Akhundzada’s] deputy will play the role of ‘president’,” he added. Akhunszada, the Taliban’s supreme leader has three deputies- Mawlavi Yaqoob, Abdul Ghani Baradar, and Sirajuddin Haqqani. Yaqoob is Mullah Omar’s son, and Baradar is a founding member who currently heads their political office in Doha. And, Haqqani is the militant leader of the powerful Haqqani network. “There will be no democratic system at all because it does not have any base in our country. We will not discuss what type of political system should we apply in Afghanistan because it is clear. It is sharia law and that is it,” clarified Hashimi.