Taliban Orders Officials To Obtain Approval Before Visiting Founder’s Grave

The Taliban’s Administrative Office has issued a directive instructing officials not to visit the grave of Mullah Omar, the group’s founder, without prior notice and coordination with Taliban authorities in Zabul, according to documents published by “TalibLeaks.”

In 2024, the Taliban’s Administrative Office had previously sent a letter to the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice, warning against uncoordinated visits to Mullah Omar’s resting place. The letter cited “security concerns” as the reason for mandating prior approval before visiting the site in Zabul.

This directive comes despite repeated claims by Taliban officials over the past year that the group has ensured “nationwide security” across Afghanistan, allowing citizens to travel freely between provinces without fear.

The Taliban officially unveiled Mullah Omar’s grave in November 2022. However, the previous Afghan government had asserted that he had passed away in April 2013 in Pakistan.

The order surfaced following a major data breach within the Taliban’s government systems. On Wednesday, a hacker group claimed responsibility for infiltrating Taliban ministries and released internal documents on a platform called “TalibLeaks.”

The Taliban’s Ministry of Communications has acknowledged the leak, confirming that documents from multiple government offices have been exposed. On Thursday, the ministry stated that initial assessments suggest the breach may have originated from individual computers with inadequate security measures.

However, Taliban officials have denied that the central government database was compromised.