Is Mullah Omar dead? Guessing game on, again

Is the one-eyed Mullah Omar, the architect of the first Taliban government in 1996 and the world’s most hunted terrorist leaders, dead? There have been speculation off and on, but this time there is an added gravitas about the claims made about the Taliban leader’s death.

In a startling revelation, sources in the Afghan government and intelligence agencies have told BBC that it has received reports that the Taliban supreme leader died more than two years back, but are waiting for further details.

A spokesperson for the Taliban said the group would issue a statement on the matter soon.

The Afghan government is probing new reports about the Taliban leader’s death. “As soon as we get any more authentication… we’re going to let the media and the people of Afghanistan know about that,” Sayed Zafar Hashemi, a spokesman for Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said.

Mullah Omar, popularly known as the one-eyed leader who lost his eye in one of his many battles, led the Taliban to victory in the aftermath of the withdrawal of Soviet Union from Afghanistan. In 1996 Taliban claimed to be the legitimate government in Afghanistan and he led the government.

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