Taliban leader Mullah Baradar says, 'I am not injured, I am fine'

Ground Report | New Delhi: Taliban leader Mullah Baradar says; Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the deputy prime minister of the Taliban government in Afghanistan, has denied reports of his injuries in a video released. Baradar released the video and denied reports that he had been injured in violence with a rival Taliban faction.

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Taliban leader Mullah Baradar says

Taliban co-founder Baradar was not seen in public for the past several days, after which many speculations were being made. There were also reports of a dispute between Taliban leaders. Reports said there had been a dispute between Baradar and a rival faction loyal to the Haqqani network.

But by releasing the video, Baradar has denied reports of any internal strife. When Baradar was asked if he was hurt? So he said, "No, that's not true. I am fine and healthy." "I was out of Kabul and I didn't have internet to debunk these fake news," he said.

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In a recent interview with Milli Radio Television Afghanistan, Mullah Baradar has denied reports of differences and injuries with Taliban leaders. In an interview, Mullah Baradar reported his well-being, saying that he was traveling outside Kabul, from where access to the media was not possible.

He added: "We did not know that the Foreign Minister was coming from Qatar to visit Afghanistan. If we had known, we would have suspended our trip. We were on a trip, so we could not meet." It was not possible for us to return from the trip and meet the Foreign Minister. If it had been known earlier, we would have met the Foreign Minister along with other colleagues.

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'Baseless propaganda'

Taliban officials tried to suppress the speculation by calling it "baseless propaganda" and immediately released a video in which the brothers allegedly attended a meeting. A handwritten letter from an aide to the deputy prime minister has also been issued. 

The Taliban have also released an audio message allegedly recording Mullah Baradar. An old photo of him has also been released.

The Taliban's immediate move to dispel speculation about the absence of its two leaders has been likened to a cover-up of the death of Taliban founder Mullah Omar. In the past, the Taliban issued audio messages and written statements in Mullah Omar's name for two years after his death, but eventually confirmed that he was dead.

Taliban spokesman Sohail Shaheen said on Twitter that "the Deputy Prime Minister of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, Mullah Bardar, in a video message has rejected all claims that he was injured or killed in the clash." "It's all lies and completely baseless," he said.

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