In an apparent insider attack, two Taliban militants have shot dead fourteen of their comrades in northern Kunduz province of Afghanistan.

According to local government officials, the incident took place late on Monday night in Imam Sahib district.

Provincial police spokesman Syed Sarwar Husaini said the two Taliban militants surrendered to the security forces after killing their comrades.

Hussaini further added that the gunmen also handed over weapons belonging to the slian militants.

The main motive behind the incident has not been ascertained so far with the Taliban group yet to comment regarding the incident.

Kunduz is among the relatively volatile provinces in northern Afghanistan where anti-government armed militant groups are actively operting and frequently carry out insurgency activities.

This is the first of its kind attack carried out by the Taliban militants on their comrades which comes amid growing rift among the Taliban leadership regarding the appointment of Mullah Akhtar Mansoor as the new Taliban group leader.

This comes as at least fifteen Taliban militants were killed during a gun battle between the two rival groups divided on the appointment of Mullah Akhtar Mansoor in Shindand district of Herat province last month.

Monday’s incident was the third infighting between the Taliban militants over the appointment of Mullah Mansoor as the successor of Mullah Mohammad Omar who was announced dead nearly two months ago.

At least 9 Taliban insurgents including the group’s senior commander were killed during the first infighting in Herat province earlier last month.

http://www.khaama.com/2-taliban-militants-kill-14-of-their-comrades-in-kunduz-province-9613

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The First Vice President Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum, who returned to Kabul on Monday after taking part in a month-long military operation in northern Afghanistan, has called on Russia to provide Afghan security forces with military hardware including aircraft.

Speaking at a press conference in Kabul late Monday night, Dostum said that “they [Russia] should not be silent. Our security forces need aircraft, helicopters and equipment. A lot of our equipment is already from Russia. They should help our security forces,” he said.

In addition, he raised the issue of Daesh and said the group is not only a threat to Afghanistan but a threat to the entire region.

“Everyone knows that Afghanistan is not the only country on their [Daesh] plan. If their plan was only Afghanistan – what are Uzbek and Chechen [insurgents] doing here,” Gen. Dostum asked.

“The [Daesh] plan is the Caucasus Mountains, Russia and central Asia. You are watching Syria and Iraq being destroyed and they want to destabilize the security in central Asia,” Dostum said.

Referring to the northern battle, Dostum said troops have now cleared northern Faryab and Sar-e-Pul provinces and “it is now the duty of the security organizations to maintain stability in these provinces.”

Dostum joined the security forces on the frontline in northern Faryab province earlier this month and survived at least two assassination plots and ambushes by insurgents groups.

Before his return to Kabul, Dostum said on Monday that plots against Afghanistan in Sar-e-Pul by Pakistan’s Inter-Services intelligence (ISI) have been foiled after the Taliban were defeated in Kohistanat district.

This comes after the military operation that Dostum was leading managed to stamp out insurgents in the area and restore law-and-order.

He termed the retaking of Kohistanat as a big victory and congratulated the people for it.

Dostum called on Kohistanat residents to unite, and work hard at maintaining security in the district. He also appealed to the locals to prevent the Taliban from making a comeback in the area.

A number of tribal elders in Sar-e-Pul praised Dostum’s efforts to stabilize the province.

Dostum said a few weeks back that he had donned his military uniform and joined troops in the north in a bid to eliminate insurgents, motivate security forces and ensure security.

The mountainous areas in the province can serve as a safe haven for the insurgents therefore the security forces were asked by Dostum to adopt serious measures to prevent the infiltration of the Taliban into these areas; otherwise the locals said they will once again witness insecurity in the district.

http://www.tolonews.com/en/afghanistan/21185-dostum-returns-to-kabul-calls-for-russias-help

Air strikes have left 27 Taliban militants dead and injured 16 others in Gereshk district of Helmand province, southern Afghanistan, district police chief Abdul Qayum Barak said Tuesday.

“Acting upon intelligence report, the government forces conducted air raids against a Taliban hideout in Gereshk district early Tuesday, leaving 27 armed rebels dead and injured 16 others, ” Barak told Xinhua.

Neither civilians nor security personnel has been hurt during the air strikes, the official stressed.

Taliban militants fighting the government to regain power are yet to make comment.

A suicide bomber on Tuesday killed at least three people and wounded dozens in Pakistan’s volatile northwest where security forces are fighting the Taliban and their allies, officials said.

The attack targeted a paramilitary vehicle in the Jamrud area of the Khyber tribal agency, official Shaukatullah Afridi, who was metres away from the blast, said.

The vehicle belonged to the Khasadar, or tribal police force. At least 43 wounded were rushed to hospital in Peshawar, about 20 km (12 miles) to the east, hospital doctor Noor Wazir said, adding the death toll could rise.

The military has been battling the Pakistani Taliban and their ally, the Lashkar-e-Islam, in Khyber since October last year, with fighting mostly focused on the strategic Tirah Valley.

At least 150 Taliban insurgents were killed in a large-scale military operation in eastern Nangarhar province in the past month, local officials said on Monday.

In addition, more than 100 other insurgents were injured.

The operation was launched in Hesarak, Sherzad and Khoghyani districts of the province which borders Pakistan. The operation was launched to clear insurgents a month ago and ended on Monday, Mohammad Zaman Waziri, the commander of Selab 201 Military Corps in eastern Afghanistan said.

The operation was named “Musalas-e-Ahaneen” in which 13 security soldiers were also killed and three others injured, Mohammad Zaman Waziri said.

The military officials said that the insurgents gathered across the border and come into Afghanistan with the intention of destabilizing the country.

“We have destroyed all Taliban bases in Hesarak and Sherzad districts of the province and the Taliban insurgents had massive casualties in the month’s operation,” said Waziri.

The military soldiers, who have since returned to their bases, said the “Taliban insurgents created problems for residents in these areas. We were sent from different provinces to rescue our people.”

“I have fought the Taliban insurgents face-to-face and the people,” a soldier Ahmadullah said.

Another soldier, and resident of eastern Kunar province, Mustafa said that “the Taliban created problems for the people. I have killed a number of Talibs and as long as I am alive I will rescue my peoples from them.”

Meanwhile, the Provincial Police Chief, Fazal Ahmad Sherzad, said that a number of police posts have been established along the Nangarhar highways.

“Sherzad borders with Pakistan so because of this the Taliban activities are more frequent and we have created a number of police posts to prevent insurgent attacks,” Serzad said.

The operation was a joint campaign with police, military and the National Directorate of Security (NDS) and conducted in three districts of the province.

In a blunt message, the US has asked Pakistan to intensify efforts to counter terrorist sanctuaries inside its borders and take concrete steps against the dreaded Haqqani network responsible for major attacks on American installations in Afghanistan.

The tough message was conveyed by US National Security Advisor Susan Rice to the top Pakistani leadership including Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and army chief Gen Raheel Sharif during her day-long visit to the country yesterday.

Rice during her meetings, “urged Pakistan to intensify its efforts to counter terrorist sanctuaries inside its borders in order to promote regional peace and stability,” said Ned Price, Spokesman of the National Security Council of the White House.

Rice also urged Pakistan to take concrete steps against the Haqqani network after the recent spate of attacks in Afghanistan, Pakistani officials said.

According to Pakistani diplomatic sources, Rice appreciated Pakistan’s operation in North Waziristan but urged the country to take more concrete steps against the Haqqani network.

The group was based in North Waziristan but Pakistani officials say the militants have fled to Afghanistan after military operations.

The US’ top security official also urged Pakistan to improve ties with Kabul.

Rice told top civilian and military leaders in Islamabad that attacks in neighbouring Afghanistan by Pakistan-based militants were “absolutely unacceptable”, a senior American official was quoted as saying by the Wall Street Journal.

According to daily, Rice’s remarks were in reference to the recent allegations by Afghan president Ashraf Ghani that the series of terror attacks in Kabul were from terrorists based in Pakistan.

“We share the concerns of the Afghan Government,” the unnamed official was quoted as saying.

Rice told Pakistani leaders that “terrorist and militant attacks have developed into a key point of regional friction.”

“Addressing this challenge will be imperative for Pakistan’s relations with its neighbours and with Washington,” a US official was quoted as saying by New York Times, “especially given the recent upsurge in violence in Kabul and the Taliban’s bloody campaign this fighting season in Afghanistan.”

The US official, however, made no reference to India’s assertions that the recent terror attacks in its territory were carried out by militants from across the border.

According to the daily, Rice’s visit to Islamabad was unrelated to the growing tensions between India and Pakistan. It had been scheduled weeks ago, the official said.

http://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/us-bluntly-tells-pak-to-act-on-terror-safe-havens-115083100264_1.html

http://www.sada-e-azadi.net/index.php/en/afghanistan/capital/13022-20-militants-killed-in-security-operations-in-eight-provinces

In the preface of the biography, it has been reiterated that Mullal Akhtar Mohammad Mansour is the legitimate leader of the Taliban.

The biography begins with the Date of Birth and Place of Birth of Mullah Mansour.

It states that he was born in 1968 in Band-i-TAimoor village of Maiwand District of southern Kandahar province

According to the biography when Soviets invaded Afghanistan, Mullah Mansour left his religious education unfinished and joined the ‘Jihad’against them.

It adds that after the collapse of Soviet Union he put down his arms and when Taliban took over the country he joined the Taliban ranks and worked on different posts including the minister for aviation and tourism.

According to the information, Mullah Mansour again took his arm to fight when their regime was collapsed in 2001. Besides being a member of Taliban’s central Shura (council) he was given deferent responsibilities. When Mullah Ombaidullah Akhund was arrested, Mullah Mansour was then appointed as the second deputy to Mullah Mohammad Omar.

The information further states that when Mullah Obaidullah Akhund died in the captivity of Pakistani forces in 2010 and Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar was arrested, Mullah Mansour was then appointed as the deputy head and general in-charge of all operational activities.

It further states that when Mulllah Omar died on 23^rd April 2013 and several key members of the Taliban Shura decided to conceal the death of Mullah Omar.

According to the released information, this news was kept secret until 30^th July 2015 after which majority of the Shura decided to announce Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansour as the replacement for Mullah Omar.

http://www.khaama.com/taliban-release-biography-of-mullah-akhtar-mohammad-mansour-3850