US officials have captured Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the top military commander of the Taliban, in a joint operation by the US and Pakistani intelligence forces, according to The New York Times.
Baradar has been regarded as the No. 2 man behind Mullah Muhammad Omar, the founder of the Taliban and an associate of Osama bin Laden. According to the Times, he has remained in Pakistan’s custody since his capture in Karachi, Pakistan several days ago, during a raid conducted by the joint forces of Pakistan’s Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence and some CIA operatives.
Baradar is the head of the Taliban’s military council. His position in the Taliban rose when their military chief Mullah Akhtar Mohammed Usmani died in 2006. He is known to coordinate the military operations of the movement throughout the southern and south-western parts of Afghanistan, with his area of direct responsibility stretching over the provinces of Helmand, Kandahar, Zabul, Nimroz, and Uruzgan.
If the news of Baradar’s capture is confirmed, it could be a major setback for the movement.
According to a spokesman for the Taliban in Afghanistan, their military commander is still free. However, he did not give any evidence for his statement.
“We totally deny this rumour. He has not been arrested” Zabiullah Mujahid told the Associated Press via telephone.
Mujahid said the report of Baradar’s capture was plain Western propaganda intended to downplay the Taliban’s efforts to fend off an assault in Marjah, southern Afghanistan.
“The Taliban are having success with our jihad. It is to try to demoralise the Taliban who are on jihad in Marjah and all of Afghanistan”, he said.
