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Taliban Avoid ‘Counterproductive’ Delay by Appointing New Emir

© AP Photo / Rahmat GulTaliban fighters hold their heavy and light weapons before surrendering them to Afghan authorities in Jalalabad, east of Kabul, Afghanistan. File photo
Taliban fighters hold their heavy and light weapons before surrendering them to Afghan authorities in Jalalabad, east of Kabul, Afghanistan. File photo - Sputnik International
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The Taliban swiftly appointed a new Commander of the Faithful to replace their recently-fallen leader because they realized the two-year delay in naming Mullah Mohammad Omar’s successor was self-defeating, former US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Steven Bucci told Sputnik.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) – Earlier this week, the Taliban confirmed it had appointed Haibatullah Akhundzada as its new leader to replace Mullah Akhtar Mansour, who was killed in a US drone strike in Pakistan over the weekend.

"It shows that they [Taliban] realize their long delay in replacing Mullah Omar was counterproductive," Bucci told Sputnik on Thursday.

Taliban new leader Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada is seen in an undated photograph, posted on a Taliban twitter feed on May 25, 2016, and identified separately by several Taliban officials, who declined be named - Sputnik International
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Taliban Leader Not to Improve Prospects of Reconciliation in Afghanistan

Mansour had been the Taliban's top commander since the Afghan government confirmed Mullah Omar’s death in July 2015. Afghan officials said Mullah Omar actually died in Pakistan in April 2013.

At this point, Bucci noted, no one knows how Akhundzada will move forward and it is too soon to tell how it will affect Taliban operations, although new leadership has certain near-term tendencies.

"New leaders tend to be aggressive, at least initially, to prove themselves."

In this photograph taken on November 3, 2015, Afghan Taliban fighters listen to Mullah Mohammad Rasool Akhund (unseen), the newly appointed leader of a breakaway faction of the Taliban, at Bakwah in the western province of Farah - Sputnik International
Taliban Military Operations Unaffected by Leadership Change
Bucci added that the change in leadership will cause a delay in peace negotiations but will have little to no effect on US military strategy.

On Thursday, private intelligence firm Soufan Group said in a report that Akhundzada’s ascendance will not improve the prospects for peace talks between the Taliban and Kabul.

The US Defense Department told Sputnik on Wednesday that the appointment of Akhundzada as the new leader of the Taliban will not interfere with US efforts to achieve reconciliation between the group and the government of Afghanistan.

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