Dozens of Pakistani troops 'captured by the Taliban'

[Musafira]

BBC News - Dozens of Pakistani troops 'captured by the Taliban'


The Afghan Taliban says it has captured dozens of Pakistani soldiers after attacking their checkpoint in a cross-border raid.
Pakistani security sources confirm some troops are missing.
The Taliban says it is holding up to 40 Pakistani troops after its raid in the Mohmand tribal area on Monday.
Afghan officials said eight soldiers had been handed over to the Pakistani consulate in Jalalabad, but Pakistan's army said it had no knowledge of this.
The BBC's M Ilyas Khan says that while attacks by the Taliban on border check posts are relatively routine, it is unusual for Pakistani soldiers to be held by the militants in Afghanistan.
A Taliban spokesman told the BBC that it was in fact holding Pakistani troops on both sides of the border after Monday's attack.
It said 30 soldiers were being held in Afghanistan and 10 in Pakistan.
The Taliban says it captured the soldiers after over-running the checkpoint.
Local officials in the Mohmand area confirmed to the BBC that about 40 soldiers were unaccounted for.
Pakistani security sources said on Monday an undisclosed number of troops were missing.
An Afghan army commander in Jalalabad told the BBC that 10 Pakistani soldiers had been handed over to the Pakistani consulate, although the Pakistani army said it was not aware of this.
'Baseless propaganda' Meanwhile, the Afghan Taliban have dismissed the findings of a report which says Pakistan's intelligence service had a direct role in supporting the insurgents.


In an e-mail sent to the BBC, the Taliban said the report was "baseless propaganda".
The report, compiled by a London School of Economics scholar, said Pakistani intelligence provided funding, training and sanctuaries to the Taliban on a much greater scale than previously thought.
"The Islamic Emirate considers this report of the London School of Economics as merely baseless propaganda," the letter said.
The Taliban have also denied reports that their fighters hanged a seven-year-old boy last week on charges of spying in Afghanistan's Helmand province.
"After a full investigation by the Islamic Emirate leadership, it became clear that no event of execution had taken place," a Taliban statement said.
The Taliban criticized journalists for misreporting the event.

[Admin Khan]

Wow, 40 troops?

[Musafira]

It seems as if this was a stunt by the Afghan taliban to say "See that report is untrue. If we were funded by Pakistani ISI why would we capture Pakistani troops???".


I am confused though between Afghan taliban & Pakistan taliban. Can someone explain the differences between the two. I always thought that it's the Pakistani taliban who are funded by ISI.

[Jana]

It seems as if this was a stunt by the Afghan taliban to say "See that report is untrue. If we were funded by Pakistani ISI why would we capture Pakistani troops???".

According to my reports the attack came day before yesterday and Afghan Army administered the attack by some elements probably by TTP people who got shelter in Afghanistan after Army started operation on our side.
In the attack they killed few soldiers are also.

I am confused though between Afghan taliban & Pakistan taliban. Can someone explain the differences between the two. I always thought that it's the Pakistani taliban who are funded by ISI.

The Taliban we supported are mainly the ones who are against invasion of Afghanistan by US and NATO. We do not support any aggression against Afghan people.

TTP people currently have many foreign players as their financers to create chaos and killings in Pakistan. Though lately Haqqani, Molvi Nazeer, Gul Bahadur are also sheltering TTP

[Levanaye Zalmaye]

We do not support any aggression against Afghan people.

Yup we don't indeed!

Taliban treatment of women - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
some of the restrictions imposed by Taliban in Afghanistan

It's no wonder that the average Afghan loves us.

[tor_khan]

I am confused though between Afghan taliban & Pakistan taliban. Can someone explain the differences between the two.

The Taliban we supported are mainly the ones who are against invasion of Afghanistan by US and NATO.

Therefore Taliban in Afghanistan = good, however Taliban in Pakistan = bad. How reckless is that?

[MazloomyarMaseed]

Jana

If Pakistan cares so much for Afghanistan then why doesnt your Army invade Afghanistan and bring betterment, due to your sneeky and low ambitions, the same groups whom you invented to cover and to do your dirty work may one day all turn on you, and you can blaime the whole world, lets see zaid hamid will save Pakistan.

Kind Regards

[MazloomyarMaseed]

Its all a staged drama to make ISI and Pakistan Army look innocent, i bet they paid these guys to do it.

Let another Indian attack happen, and you will see who the Taliban truely are.

Its all drama!

[Musafira]

Its all a staged drama to make ISI and Pakistan Army look innocent, i bet they paid these guys to do it.

Let another Indian attack happen, and you will see who the Taliban truely are.

Its all drama!

I also think it was staged to refute that report of ISI support and cooperation with the Taliban but I was under the impression that it was the Pakistani taliban that ISI supported and this article said it was Afghan taliban who caputured Pakistani troopds. Does ISI support both? I'm lost....sorry.

[MazloomyarMaseed]

I also think it was staged to refute that report of ISI support and cooperation with the Taliban but I was under the impression that it was the Pakistani taliban that ISI supported and this article said it was Afghan taliban who caputured Pakistani troopds. Does ISI support both? I'm lost....sorry.

Afghan Taliban is supported by the ISI

There are elements of Pakistani taliban which is under the control of ISI

People such as Mullah Nazeer gul badahar etc etc etc are supported by ISI, but there are some when i say SOME taliban in Pakistani Taliban who are against ISI but that only happens sometimes and they always switch sides.

Kind Regards

[Darweshkhel]

Murder them all!

[Darweshkhel]

Full text of the denial of Pakistani support by the Quetta Shura

A Study Team of the London School of Economics has claimed in a report that the intelligence agency of Pakistan has been supporting the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan militarily and logistically. It has claimed that Pakistani intelligence officials practically participate in meetings of the alleged Quetta Council and impose their discretions on members of the Leadership Council.

While considering this report of the London School of Economic as a merely baseless propaganda launched to promote British and American interests, the Islamic Emirate, meanwhile, declares its stand as follows:

1. The military power of the Evil Coalition including American, British and NATO forces have failed to prevent the victorious operations of the Mujahideen of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. Now they want to utilize their academic and research institutes in the work of the occupation of Afghanistan and for oppression of the Afghan Muslim people. The baseless report of the London School of Economics is a case in point. The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan believes, the said report by the so-called research institute is a dictated drama of the political rulers of the West. It is not an investigative report based on facts and reasons, ethically carried out by academic research institute.

2. The current Jihad and resistance against the invaders are being led by the leadership of the Islamic Emirate based inside Afghanistan – obviously with the help and support of the Afghan Mujahid people. The enemy itself admits, the Islamic Emirate has control over 70% of the Afghan soil. The Islamic Emirate does not need to have such councils outside the country in order to continue the current popular resistance.

3. The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has always emphasized that the present resistance is completely an home-grown Afghan Islamic resistance against the aggression of the invaders. It is not possible to lead such resistance simply by foreign support instead of the native support of the Afghan masses. Had a foreign support rather than indigenous support , ever played a role in such cases, then the surrogate administration of Karzai has military, espionage, economic and political support of 49 countries, why it has failed to prevent the growing national resistance of the Afghan Mujahid nation despite the support of the foreign invaders that the Administration enjoys?

4. Rulers of the government of Pakistan claim that they are the frontline pioneers of the American ignited war. They have not spared to do whatever was in their capacity to do. Hence, it is not rationale to say that they are supporting the jihad and resistance against the Americans in Afghanistan. Had Pakistan supported the Mujahideen, then manifestations and impact of their support would have categorically become visible.

5. The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan openly invites all academic and research institutes, military and intelligence entities of the world including the London School of Economics to come to Afghanistan and behold the ranks of the Islamic Emirate with their own eyes that whether the Afghan gallant people or any foreigner make up the Mujahideen and leaders of the Jihad. Then again, they should check the ranks of the Karzai stooge administration to see whether their leaders are the gallant Afghans or the open enemies of our country and the invaders. After that, they should put, their academic and investigative report conducted on the basis of the ground realities, at the disposal of the public of the world. Had they done so, these academic institutes would have abided by their recognized norms and principles; would have saved their caliber and reputations, and produced useful academic report. At least, it would not have been a fabricated drama, ironically ordered by the arrogant powers.

6. To end, the Islamic Emirate calls on all independent countries of the world, particularly, the neighboring countries to extend their support to the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan to put an end to the occupation of the arrogants so that our oppressed and suffering countrymen can get rid of the occupation of the tyrants and form an independent system.

Leadership Council

Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.

[Afghan_Soldier]

The Taliban we supported are mainly the ones who are against invasion of Afghanistan by US and NATO. We do not support any aggression against Afghan people.

May Allah put you hypocrites Pakis through the agony that every Afghan went through the Taliban you admire. May Pakistan burn in the same fire too. May it leave every hypocrite ***-* house destroyed and shattered. Ameeen.

The war on Taliban should go on, I know some of them are misguided but that is the price we have to pay. We should kill every one associated with Pakis in a manner that Taliban are.

[Darweshkhel]

The Pakistani Taliban's top leaders

By Bill Roggio
May 17, 2010



After the failed car bomb attack in New York City’s Times Square, the Pakistani Taliban have suddenly risen to the top of the list of concerns for Western intelligence and law enforcement officials. The Pakistan Taliban’s claim for the failed attack was initially ignored, but the resulting investigation has pointed back to the group’s involvement. This has forced US officials to admit that the Pakistani group is more than just a local insurgent outfit aiming at overthrowing the Pakistani government.

Although the Pakistani Taliban has only recently been recognized as a threat to the US homeland, the group has for years conducted operations in Pakistan and Afghanistan and sheltered al Qaeda and a host of regional and international terror groups. Al Qaeda’s external operations network has been based in territory ruled by the Pakistani Taliban, yet strangely, most Western observers have not seen the Pakistani Taliban as a direct threat.

The largest Taliban faction in Pakistan is known as the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan, or the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan. This is an alliance of 28 Taliban groups located in Pakistan’s tribal areas and the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (formerly known as the Northwest frontier Province). There are also several other major Taliban groups, mainly in North Waziristan, that are not members of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan but that have remained closely allied with the group.

There are also two other Tehreek-i-Taliban factions, which are not discussed here: the Movement of the Taliban in Punjab, and the Movement of the Taliban in Baluchistan. The Movement of the Taliban in Punjab is made up largely of members of the myriad Pakistani jihadi groups, such as the Lashkar-e-Taiba, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, Jaish-e-Mohammed, Harkat-ul-Jihad-i-Islami, and Harkat-ul-Mujahideen. The Movement of the Taliban in Baluchistan is a shadowy organization of which little is known. The group maintains a strong presence in the areas of Baluchistan province bordering Afghanistan, and supports operations against Afghan and Coalition forces.

The top leaders of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan:

• Hakeemullah Mehsud is the emir, or leader, of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan. He was appointed emir after his predecessor, Baitullah Mehsud, was killed in a US airstrike in August 2009. Prior to leading the Pakistani Taliban movement, Hakeemullah led forces in Arakzai, Khyber, and Peshawar. He is considered an able military commander. He was responsible for the series of raids against US military supply convoys moving through Peshawar in 2007 and 2008. The raids forced the Khyber Pass to be shut down six times between the summer of 2007 and the spring of 2008. Hakeemullah is close to al Qaeda and the Afghan Taliban, as well as to the constellation of Pakistani jihadist groups such as the Lashkar-e-Taiba, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, and Jaish-e-Mohammed.

• Qari Hussain Mehsud is Hakeemullah Mehsud’s deputy. He is considered the master trainer of suicide bombers and an expert bomb maker. He ran suicide training camps for children in Spinkai in South Waziristan. The military destroyed one of these camps during a brief operation in January 2008, but Qari reopened the camp months later. He is considered a candidate to take over the Pakistani Taliban in the event of Hakeemullah's death.

• Azam Tariq is the top spokesman for the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan. He was appointed as Hakeemullah’s spokesman in August 2009 after Baitullah Mehsud was killed in a US airstrike in South Waziristan. Tariq appeared on a Taliban tape in May 2010 threatening further attacks on the US.

North Waziristan:

• Hafiz Gul Bahadar is the senior Taliban leader in North Waziristan and one of the most prominent commanders in Pakistan. He is not aligned with the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan but does maintain close ties to the group. He is a direct descendant of Mirza Ali Khan, the tribal leader who fought the British and the Indians in the early 20th century. Bahadar chairs the North Waziristan Shura, or executive council. His forces defeated the Pakistani Army in 2006 and 2007; nonetheless, Bahadar is considered by the Pakistani establishment a "pro-government Taliban" leader. Al Qaeda and allied Pakistani and Central Asian jihadi groups shelter in Bahadar's tribal areas, and run training camps and safe houses in the region.

• Siraj Haqqani is the military commander of the Haqqani Network, a powerful and deadly faction of the Afghan Taliban. Siraj is a member of al Qaeda’s Shura Majlis, or top council, and he also leads the Afghan Taliban’s Quetta Regional Military Shura, one of four military commands for Afghanistan. Siraj is essentially the top Taliban leader in all of Pakistan. He works carefully to shield his influence from the media, however, and portrays himself as a regional commander in the Afghan Taliban.

• Sadiq Noor is a top Taliban commander in the Mir Ali region. Noor is not a member of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan. Noor is closely allied with al Qaeda, particularly Abu Kasha al Iraqi, and the Uzbek factions (the Islamic Jihad Union and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan).

South Waziristan:

• Waliur Rehman Mehsud is the leader of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan in the Mehsud areas of South Waziristan. He is considered a possible successor to Hakeemullah.

• Mullah Nazir is a Taliban leader in the Waziri areas of South Waziristan. Nazir is not a member of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan; he is closely allied to Mullah Bahadar. Pakistan's military and intelligence services consider Nazir and his followers "good Taliban" as they do not openly seek the overthrow of the Pakistani state. However, Nazir openly supports Mullah Omar and Osama bin Laden, and wages jihad in Afghanistan. More senior al Qaeda leaders have been killed in Nazir's tribal areas during the US air campaign than in those of any other Taliban leader in Pakistan.

Mohmand:

• Omar Khalid is the leader of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan in Mohmand. Khalid is considered one of the most effective and powerful leaders in the tribal areas. Khalid gained prominence in Mohmand during the summer of 2007 after taking over a famous shrine and renaming it the Red Mosque, after the radical mosque in Islamabad whose followers had attempted to impose sharia in the capital. In July 2008, Khalid became the dominant Taliban commander in Mohmand after defeating the Shah Sahib group, a rival pro-Taliban terror group with ties to the Lashkar-e-Taiba.

• Qari Shakeel is a top lieutenant to Omar Khalid in the Mohmand tribal agency.

Bajaur:

• Faqir Mohammed is the leader of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan in Bajaur and serves as Hakeemullah’s second in command. His forces defeated the Pakistani Army in Bajaur in two offensives in 2008 and fought the military to a stalemate in 2009 and 2010. He is a close ally to Ayman al Zawahiri. Bajaur serves as an al Qaeda command and control center for operations in northeastern Afghanistan.

• Qari Zia Rahman is a Taliban and al Qaeda leader who operates in Pakistan’s Bajaur tribal agency as well as in Afghanistan’s Nuristan and Kunar provinces. He is closely allied with Faqir Mohammed and Osama bin Laden. Rahman's fighters are from Chechnya, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, and various Arab nations. He commands a brigade in al Qaeda's paramilitary Shadow Army, or the Lashkar al Zil, US intelligence officials have told The Long War Journal.

• Waliur Rahman is a deputy military commander to Faqir Mohammed. He leads a Taliban sub-group called the Jaish-i-Islami Pakistan, or the Army of Islam in Pakistan. He has led negotiations between the Taliban and the tribes.

• Maulana Mohammad Jamal is a powerful commander who reportedly replaced Faqir as the leader of the Bajaur Taliban after Faqir did not oppose a military advance into Bajaur. Jamal was said to have been chosen by the Bajaur Taliban shura, and a commander known as Burhanuddin was chosen as his deputy. The report is unconfirmed, however, and all indications are that Faqir still leads the Bajaur Taliban.

Kurram:

• Maulvi Noor Jamal is the leader of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan in Kurram. Jamal, who is also known as Maulvi Toofan, is considered a ruthless and bloodthirsty commander. He is at the forefront of the sectarian war against the Shia population in Kurram. In early 2010, Jamal denied rumors that he had taken control of the Pakistani Taliban after Hakeemullah Mehsud was reported killed in late January 2010. In fact, Toofan claimed Hakeemullah was still alive.

• Fazal Saeed Utezai is a deputy to Hakeemullah and leads Taliban fighters in the Kurram tribal agency. His forces have been behind some of the worst sectarian violence against the Shia tribes.

Arakzai:

• Akhunzada Aslam Farooqui is the leader of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan in the Arakzai tribal agency. Farooqui took control of the Taliban after Hakeemullah Mehsud was promoted to lead the entire Taliban movement in Pakistan’s tribal areas and in the northwest. Farooqui was described as the "patron-in-chief" of the Taliban in Arakzai and a "close friend of Mullah Mohammad Omar" back in 2001. At the opening of Operation Enduring Freedom, Farooqui promised to have 12,000 tribesmen to battle US forces in Afghanistan and offered support such as sanctuary and weapons and ammunition. He claimed to lead 7,000 Taliban fighters.

• Mufti Ilyas commands Taliban forces in Darra Adam Khel and is a deputy to Hakeemullah Mehsud. He formed a group that is assigned to assassinate Shia leaders.

Khyber, Peshawar, Kohat, and Hangu:

• Commander Tariq Afridi is the leader of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan in Khyber, as well as in regions in Peshawar, Kohat, and Hangu. Afridi was named the terror group's commander of Khyber in November 2009. Afridi is also the leader of the Commander Tariq Afridi Group. This Taliban outfit is considered the most powerful terror group in Arakzai, and is based in Darra Adam Khel. The Tariq Afridi Group also conducts attacks on Pakistani security forces in Arakzai, Kohat, and Hangu. His fighters were responsible for closing down the Kohat Tunnel twice in 2008. In early 2009, the Commander Tariq Afridi Group claimed the murder and beheading of Polish geologist Piotr Stanczak. In early 2010, operating under the guise of an outfit named the "Asian Tigers," the group was responsible for the kidnapping and murder of former ISI officer and jihadist sympathizer Khalid Khawaja.

Swat:

• Mullah Fazlullah is the leader of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan in Swat. His father-in-law is Sufi Mohammed, the leader of the radical TNSM, or the Movement for the Enforcement of Mohammed's Law. Fazlullah led the Taliban takeover of Swat in 2007 and fought the Pakistani Army to a standstill in 2007, 2008, and 2009, when he forced the government into a humiliating peace agreement that essentially ceded much of northwestern Pakistan to the Taliban. Fazlullah overreached in early 2009 when his forces advanced into the district of Buner, just 60 miles from Islamabad, and threatened neighboring districts. The military launched a major offensive and ousted Fazlullah's forces, but the Taliban have since returned and waged a low-level insurgency.

• Ibin Amin is Fazlullah’s military commander and the leader of the Tora Bora Brigade, a unit in al Qaeda's paramilitary Shadow Army. He led the invasion of Buner.

Mansehra:

• Moman Khan is the leader of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan in Mansehra. Khan previously claimed to have been commander of the Lashkar-i-Jhangvi, an anti-Shia terror group that has been co-opted by al Qaeda and has conducted numerous attacks inside Pakistan, but he has since said he no longer works with the group. Khan is said to have been behind recent threats and attacks against nongovernmental organizations in neighboring Abbottabad. During the spring of 2009, the Taliban entered Mansehra in force, establishing a base and a training camp there in April of that year. The move took place while the Pakistani military was launching an offensive in the Swat Valley to depose the Taliban led by Mullah Fazlullah. The military and police did not attempt to stop the Taliban's move into Mansehra.

[Darweshkhel]

The Afghan Taliban's top leaders

By Bill Roggio
Feb 23, 2010


Over the past two months, Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence agency has captured four senior leaders of the Afghan Taliban, including Mullah Omar's deputy who served as the head of the top shura, the leader of a regional shura, and two shadow governors. These captures, combined with the US-led offensive in Helmand which will expand into Kandahar and the Afghan East later this year, have given rise to reports of the potential collapse of the group.

The Afghan Taliban's leadership council and its regional shuras and committees have weathered the capture and death of senior leaders in the past. The Taliban have a deep bench of leaders with experience ranging back to the rise of the Taliban movement in the early 1990s. On prior occasions, younger commanders are known to have stepped into the place of killed or captured leaders. It remains to be seen if the sustained US offensive and possible future detentions in Pakistan will grind down the Taliban's leadership cadre.

This report looks at the Afghan Taliban's top leadership council, the Quetta Shura; its four regional military councils; the 10 committees; and existing as well as killed or captured members of the shura. Because the Taliban is a deliberately opaque movement, it is difficult to gain real-time intelligence on the structure of the Taliban command. The following information on the structure of the Taliban and its key leaders has been gathered from press reports and studies on the Taliban, and from discussions with US intelligence officials.

The Afghan Taliban leadership council

The Afghan Taliban leadership council, or rahbari shura, is often referred to as the Quetta Shura, as it is based in the Pakistani city of the same name. The Quetta Shura provides direction to the four regional military shuras and the 10 committees. The Quetta Shura is ultimately led by Mullah Mohammed Omar, the ‘leader of the faithful,’ who is the top leader of the Taliban, but Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar directed the Quetta Shura. Baradar was the Afghan Taliban's second in command and the group's operational commander who was detained in Karachi sometime in January or February 2010. Over the past several months, members of the Quetta Shura have been reported to be relocating to Karachi to avoid potential US airstrikes.

Regional military shuras

The Afghan Taliban have assigned regional military shuras for four major geographical areas of operations. The shuras are named after the areas in which they are based; note that all four of the regional military shuras are based in Pakistan (Quetta, Peshawar, Miramshah in North Waziristan, and Gerdi Jangal in Baluchistan).

• Quetta Regional Military Shura - This military shura, like the Taliban’s top council, takes its name from its base in the city of Quetta in Pakistan’s Baluchistan province. The Quetta Regional Military Shura directs activities in southern and western Afghanistan. It is currently led by Hafez Majid.
• Peshawar Regional Military Shura - Based in the city of Peshawar in Pakistan’s Northwest Frontier Province, the Peshawar Regional Military Shura directs activities in eastern and northeastern Afghanistan. Abdul Latif Mansur is thought to currently lead the Peshawar shura. It was led by Maulvi Abdul Kabir before his arrest in Pakistan in February 2010.
• Miramshah Regional Military Shura - Based in Miramshah, the main town in Pakistan’s Taliban-controlled tribal agency of North Waziristan, the Miramshah Regional Military Shura directs activities in southeastern Afghanistan, including the provinces of Paktika, Paktia, Khost, Logar, and Wardak. The Miramshah Regional Military Shura is led by Siraj Haqqani, the son of Jalaluddin Haqqani.
• Gerdi Jangal Regional Military Shura - Based in the Gerdi Jangal refugee camp in Baluchistan, this regional military shura focuses exclusively on Helmand Province and perhaps Nimroz province. The Gerdi Jangal Regional Military Shura is led by Mullah Adbul Zakir.

The 10 committees

Along with the four regional commands, the Afghan Taliban have 10 committees which address specific issues. Some of the members of the committees are also members of the Quetta Shura.

• Military - This committee was led by Mullah Nasir, the former shadow governor of Ghazni. It is not clear who currently leads the military committee.
• Ulema Council - Also known as the religious committee, it is currently led by Mawlawi Abdul Ali.
• Finance - This committee is led by Abdulhai Mutma’in.
• Political Affairs - This committee is reported to have been led by Maulvi Abdul Kabir before his capture in February 2010. His replacement is not yet known.
• Culture and Information - This committee, which deals with Taliban propaganda, is led by Amir Khan Mutaqqi.
• Interior Affairs - This committee is led by Mullah Abdul Jalil.
• Prisoners and Refugees - This committee is led by Mawlawi Wali Jan.
• Education - This committee is led by Mawlawi Ahmad Jan, however it may have been disbanded.
• Recruitment - This committee was led by Mullah Ustad Mohammad Yasir before he was arrested in Peshawar in January 2009. Yasir’s replacement is not known.
• Repatriation Committee - This committee is led Mullah Abdul Zakir.

Known active members of the Quetta Shura

The list below consists of the known members of the Quetta Shura. There may be additional members who are not listed, while some leaders on this list may no longer be on the shura.

• Hafiz Abdul Majeed is the current leader of the Quetta Regional Military Shura. He served as the Taliban’s intelligence chief.
• Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund was the governor of Kandahar and the Minister of Foreign Affairs during Taliban rule in Afghanistan.
• Mullah Mohammad Hassan Rehmani is considered to be very close to Mullah Omar. Rehmani has been described as his "shadow." He was the governor of Kandahar province during the reign of the Taliban.
• Mullah Abdul Qayum Zakir is the head of the Gerdi Jangal Regional Military Shura (Helmand and Nimroz provinces) and the Taliban's ‘surge’ commander in the South. Zakir is a former detainee of the Guantanamo Bay detention facility in Cuba who currently serves as the Taliban’s ‘surge commander’ in the Afghan South.
• Agha Jan Mohtasim is the former Finance Minister during the Taliban regime and the son-in-law of Mullah Omar. Mohtasim is a close confidant of Omar and thought to be a possible successor to Mullah Baradar.
• Amir Khan Muttaqi is the chief of the Information and Culture Committee.
• Siraj Haqqani is the leader of the Miramshah Regional Military Shura and the commander of the Haqqani Network. He is also the Taliban’s regional governor of Paktika, Paktia, and Khost.
• Mullah Mohammad Rasul was the governor of Nimroz province during the reign of the Taliban.
• Abdulhai Mutma’in is the chief of the Finance Committee. His served as a minister during the Taliban regime.
• Abdul Latif Mansur is the commander of the Abdul Latif Mansur Network in Paktika, Paktia, and Khost. He serves on the Miramshah Shura and was the former Minister of Agriculture for the Taliban regime. Mansur is thought to lead the Peshawar Regional Military Shura.
• Mullah Abdur Razzaq Akhundzada is the former corps commander for northern Afghanistan. He also served as the Taliban regime’s Interior Minister.
• Maulvi Hamdullah is the Taliban representative for the Gulf region. Hamdullah is considered to have been since 1994 one of Mullah Omar's most confidential aides. In addition, Hamdullah led the Finance Department in Kandahar during Taliban rule from 1994 until November 2001.
• Mullah Akhtar Mohammed Mansour is the former Minister of Civil Aviation and Transportation, and former shadow governor of Kandahar who is considered to be a possible successor to Baradar.
• Maulvi Qudratullah Jamal runs an investigative committee that deals with complaints from Afghan citizens against local Taliban personnel. Jamal also operates as a liaison to the Taliban's global supporters. He served as the Taliban’s chief of propaganda from 2002-2005.
• Maulvi Aminullah is the Taliban commander for Uruzgan province.
• Mullah Abdul Jalil is the head of the Taliban's Interior Affairs Committee.
• Qari Talha is the chief of Kabul operations for the Taliban.
• Sheikh Abdul Mana Niyazi is the Taliban shadow governor for Herat province.

Shura and committee members reported killed or captured:

• Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar directed the Quetta Shura. Baradar was the Afghan Taliban's second in command and the group's operational commander, and was detained in Karachi sometime in January or February 2010.
• Maulvi Abdul Kabir led the Peshawar Regional Military Council before he was captured by Pakistani intelligence in February 2010. He served as the Taliban's former shadow governor of the eastern Afghan province of Nangarhar, as well as the governor of Nangarhar during the Taliban’s reign.
• Mullah Mir Mohammed served as the shadow governor in the northern province of Baghlan. He was detained in February 2010.
• Mullah Abdul Salam served as the shadow governor in the northern province of Kunduz. He was detained in February 2010.
• Mullah Dadullah Akhund was the Taliban’s top military commander in the South. He was killed in May 2007 by British special forces in Helmand province.
• Akhtar Mohammad Osmani was a member of the Quetta Shura and was the Taliban's chief of military operations in the provinces of Uruzgan, Nimroz, Kandahar, Farah, Herat, and Helmand, as well as a top aide to Mullah Omar. He also personally vouched for the safety of Osama bin Laden and Mullah Omar. He was killed by Coalition forces while traveling near the Pakistani border in December 2006.
• Mullah Obaidullah Akhund was the Taliban Defense Minister during the reign of the Taliban from 1996 until the US toppled the government in the fall of 2001. He was close to Mullah Omar. His status is uncertain; he has been reported to have been arrested and released several times by Pakistani security forces. He was last reported in Pakistani custody in February 2008.
• Mullah Mansur Dadullah Akhund, who is also known as Mullah Bakht Mohammed, replaced his brother Mullah Dadullah Akhund as the top commander in the South during the summer of 2007. His status is uncertain; he was last reported to have been arrested by Pakistani security forces in January 2008 but is thought to have been exchanged as part of a hostage deal.
• Anwarul Haq Mujahid was a member of the Peshawar Regional Military Shura and the commander of the Tora Bora Military Front, which is based in Nangarhar province. He was detained in Peshawar in June 2009. Mujahid is the son of Maulvi Mohammed Yunis Khalis, a senior mujahedeen leader who was instrumental in welcoming Osama bin Laden into Afghanistan after he was ejected from the Sudan in 1996.
• Mullah Ustad Mohammed Yasir was the chief of the Recruitment Committee and a Taliban spokesman before he was arrested in Peshawar in January 2009.
• Mullah Younis, who is also known as Akhunzada Popalzai, was a former shadow governor of Zabul. He served as a police chief in Kabul during Taliban rule. He was captured in Karachi in February 2010.

Sources:

• "The Other Side,"Afghanistan Analysis Network
• "The Taliban Biography, The Structure and Leadership of the Taliban 1996-2002," George Washington University's National Security Archive
• "The Taliban: An Organizational Analysis," Military Review
• "Quetta-based Taliban move to Karachi," The Nation


Correction: Mullah Akhtar Mohammed Mansour was initially reported as being killed in Helmand province by the British in June 2009, but he is still alive.