The Taliban announced on Saturday that a joint coordination meeting, chaired by Mullah Yousuf Wafa, was held among governors, police chiefs, and intelligence heads of the northern zone in Maimana, the capital of Faryab province.
Photos shared by the Taliban Media Center on the social media platform X show Mullah Yousuf Wafa, the governor of Balkh and a trusted associate of Mullah Hibatullah, the group’s leader, presiding over the meeting, with northern governors and police chiefs reporting to him.
Wafa is reportedly close to the Taliban's leader and is seeking to expand Kandahar's influence in the north. It appears that he does not answer to Sirajuddin Haqqani, the group’s Interior Minister.
Some observers view this development as a consolidation of power by Kandahari representatives and weakening of the Haqqani faction within the Taliban's structure.
Prior to Wafa, Dawood Muzammil served as the Taliban governor of Balkh but was killed in an attack by ISIS. Prior to Muzammil, Qudratullah Hamza, a figure close to the Haqqani faction, held the position.
Reports of internal disputes and factional tensions within the Taliban have surfaced before.
Previously, on November, Mullah Hibatullah unexpectedly issued a decree stripping the Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Defense, and Intelligence Directorate of the authority to distribute weapons, ammunition, and military equipment.
The decree stated that only the group’s leader would have the authority to make decisions regarding the distribution of military equipment.
