The Taliban leader in Afghanistan appears publicly for the first time
Two Taliban officials told the German News Agency on Sunday that Taliban leader Hebatullah Akhundzada appeared publicly for the first time at an Islamic institute in Kandahar province in Afghanistan earlier this week, where he gave a short speech.
Taliban social media users posted a 10-minute audio clip attributed to Akhundzada on Saturday.
In his speech, he focused on spiritual issues.
The audio clip did not contain any political content.
The deputy spokesman for the Taliban government in Afghanistan, Enamullah Habibi Samanjani, and director of the Ministry of Information and Culture in the Taliban administration in Kandahar, Hafez Saeedullah, said that the gathering took place late on Saturday evening and that the recording was correct.
If true, it would be the first time Akhundzadeh has appeared in public in Afghanistan, which may dampen rumors that he may be dead.
Another Taliban official said smartphones were not allowed, so no one was able to take a picture or video of their mysterious leader.
An official at Al-Hakimiyah Institute for Islamic Studies, the institute where Akhundzada appeared, told local reporters on Sunday that the Taliban leader made a surprise visit to the institute with his son and close friends in two private cars and spent the day there.
The official said he personally collected all the smartphones to avoid any photography.
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