This post has been updated on May 26 as an official Taliban spokesman denied that an audiotape attributed to Mullah Haibatullah was released by the new emir.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid denied that the group has issued an audio message from its newly-appointed emir, Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada. Reports of the audio appeared in Reuters, AFP, Dawn, and other news outlets. The Reuters report below corrects the record:

The official spokesman for the Afghan Taliban said on Wednesday that an audio tape purporting to be from newly named leader Haibatullah Akhundzada rejecting peace talks was not issued by him and was not from the new insurgent chief. Two Taliban commanders had provided the audio to reporters late on Wednesday, saying it was an official statement. One of the commanders said he had received the recording directly from Zabihullah Mujahid, the official spokesman who earlier announced Akhundzada’s elevation. Mujahid later issued an email from his official account denying the movement had issued an audio. Reached by telephone, Mujahid said the Taliban were launching an investigation to learn who was distributing the recording.

It will be interesting to see where this audio originated from, and who distributed it. But the odds are good we will never know. This incident highlights the difficulties in tracking jihadist groups and their official propaganda in a turbulent time such as a leadership change. The Taliban’s Voice of Jihad website has been down for nearly a week (it has only returned online today, the information in the English language section is a week or more old).

Original posting:

In his first public statement since being named the Taliban’s new emir, Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada has rejected peace talks with the Afghan government and the West. Dawn reports: In an audio message released in Pashto, circulated by Taliban commanders, Haibatullah stated the “Taliban will never bow their heads and will not agree to peace talks.” Afghan Taliban’s new chief added that “people thought we will lay down our arms after Mullah Mansour’s death, but we will continue fighting ’till the end.” President Obama justified the controversial May 21 airstrike in Pakistan by saying Mansour was an obstacle to peace negotiations. “Mansour rejected efforts by the Afghan government to seriously engage in peace talks and end the violence that has taken the lives of countless innocent Afghan men, women and children,” President Obama said on May 23 when confirming Mansour’s death. “The Taliban should seize the opportunity to pursue the only real path for ending this long conflict – joining the Afghan government in a reconciliation process that leads to lasting peace and stability.” The Taliban has refused to enter into peace talks with the West since the US invasion in 2016. It has consistently said it will only accept the return of the “Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan” and the withdrawal of all foreign forces. And it has said that it would not reject al Qaeda, despite Western demands. Haibatullah’s position on negotiations should come as no surprise. Haibatullah appears to be following in the footsteps of his predecessors. He is an old school judge who issued religious edicts between 1996 and 2001, when the Taliban meted out horrific punishments to women who committed minor infractions of the group’s harsh interpretation of Islamic law. As the Taliban’s top judicial figure, he issued fatwas or religious rulings which permitted suicide assault teams to target civilian, government, and military installations. Haibatullah should not be considered a “moderate” by any stretch.

Bill Roggio is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Editor of FDD's Long War Journal.

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