Taliban denies top commander arrested, rejects it as mere propaganda



KABUL, Feb. 16 (Xinhua) — Taliban militants in Afghanistan on Tuesday utterly rejected the reported arrest of outfit's second- in-command Mullah Baradar as baseless and merely propaganda.

"Any report about the arrest of Mullah Baradar is entirely wrong and baseless. Mullah Baradar is in Afghanistan and commanding the war against NATO troops in Marja district of Helmand province," Qari Yusuf Ahmadi who claims to speak for Taliban told Xinhua from undisclosed location.

Reports from U.S. media earlier said that Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the second-in-command of Taliban hierarchy in Afghanistan, was arrested by Pakistani and U.S. intelligence services from Karachi city of Pakistan last week.

"Publishing this report had damaged the reputation of New York Times," Ahmadi further said.

The arrest of Mullah Baradar who is a close aide to Taliban elusive leader Mullah Mohammad Omar if proves true would deal a serious setback to militants who have been fighting Afghan and the NATO-led troops in the post-Taliban Afghanistan.

Related:

Taliban top military commander caught in Pakistan: report

WASHINGTON, Feb. 15 (Xinhua) — A U.S. newspaper on Monday reported that a top Taliban commander had been caught in a secret U.S.-Pakistan joint operation in Karachi.

The report released on the New York Times website identified the Taliban commander as Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, and the capture was described as "the most significant Taliban figure to be detained since the American-led war in Afghanistan started more than eight years ago." Full story


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