Sources in Badakhshan have reported a new wave of Taliban appointments and dismissals in the province’s border districts.
The sources told the Hasht-e Subh Daily on Friday, October 23, that the latest changes indicate a shift in the Taliban’s policy and an effort to dismantle the power structures established over the past four years by Jumma Fateh, a dissident Taliban commander who has been arrested.
According to the sources, significant personnel changes have taken place over the past two days across the border districts of Darwaz in Badakhshan.
The sources said all the newly appointed officials belong to the inner circle of Qari Ghulamullah Kufi, deputy commander of the “Omar Thalith” division and one of Jumma Fateh’s main rivals
According to the sources, the latest appointments include Salahuddin as the Taliban’s police commander in Nusay district; Musaddiqullah as the Taliban’s district governor there; Mawlawi Shafqatullah, the Taliban’s deputy customs official in Balkh, as the group’s district governor in Shaki; and Mawlawi Abdul Ghani as the Taliban’s police commander in Maymay district.
The new wave of internal reshuffling is reportedly indicative of hidden rivalries among senior Taliban commanders in the province.
Against this backdrop, weakening the structures and networks under Jumma Fateh’s command and replacing them with figures loyal to Qari Ghulamullah Kufi could shift the balance of power and influence in these strategically important border areas in favor of the rival faction.
