Taliban leader Mullah Hebatullah Akhundzada has postponed a planned grand assembly (Loya Jirga) due to internal disagreements among senior officials. Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani, Defense Minister Mullah Yaqoob, and Sher Mohammad Stanekzai have objected to the exclusive composition of the assembly, which was intended to legitimize the Taliban government.
Sources close to the Taliban report these officials argued that a previous scholars’ assembly in Kabul failed to yield expected results and repeating it would be unnecessarily costly. Haqqani and his allies are demanding a more inclusive jirga with tribal leaders from across the country and representatives from various social groups to gain both domestic and international legitimacy.
The Loya Jirga, originally scheduled after Eid with approximately 2,000 participants, was designed to facilitate decisions about implementing Sharia law. In February/March of last year, sources told Afghanistan International that Taliban leadership planned this assembly to create a framework for implementing Islamic punishments and to boost their legitimacy both domestically and internationally.
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