by Mirabed Joenda
Political commentators and some ex-Taliban commanders have said that Pakistan's continued support of Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada has had a significant impact on the unity of the Taliban, adding that interference into the affairs of the Taliban by Pakistan's intelligence agency - Inter Service Intelligence (ISI) - has led to the emergence of more dissident factions within the group.
Referring to recent reports that Pakistan had launched a crackdown against three top Taliban leaders, the commentators said that the detention of the three commanders in Quetta city earlier this week had nothing to do with Haibatullah as the three commanders were not his supporters and did not see him as a credible leader of the Taliban movement.
According to analysts, Pakistan's recent efforts to reunite the Taliban had not yielded positive outcomes and instead these efforts have expanded the power struggle within the hardline movement.
"This was a politically motivated move by Pakistan. Pakistan wanted to show the foreigners that they act against the Taliban on their demand," said former Taliban governor Sayed Akbar Agha.
"Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada is a trusted element of Pakistan's ISI. If anyone opposes Akhundzada's guideline and refuses his ideology or enters negotiations on his own, Pakistan will act against them," said a former diplomat to Pakistan Ahmad Saeedi.
In a new development, a dissident Taliban faction led by Mullah Abdul Rassoul has indicated they will consider entering peace negotiations with the Afghan government.
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