Taliban Leader Mullah Hebtullah Orders Crackdown on Dissident Commander in Badakhshan

Internal tensions within the Taliban administration have entered a new phase. According to Afghanistan International, Mullah Hebtullah, the leader of the Taliban, has ordered a crackdown on ‘Juma Fateh,’ a Tajik commander within the group, labeling him a ‘rebel’; a move that has brought Badakhshan to the brink of an internal military conflict.

Juma Fateh, one of the influential commanders in the Darwaz areas of Badakhshan and simultaneously the Taliban deputy governor in Zabul, returned to his native Badakhshan after sources indicated there were plans to arrest or physically eliminate him. He has disobeyed orders issued from Kandahar for over two months. Cutting off his access to financial resources, especially the income from regional gold mines, has escalated the dispute into economic and military dimensions.

The dissident commander claims to have about 10,000 loyal forces in Badakhshan and northeastern territories, including 2,500 well-equipped troops in the Nusay district. It is reported that over recent years he has seized several large stockpiles of heavy and advanced weapons, remnants from Dr. Najibullah’s era and the years of jihad, and has also acquired some military equipment through the black market.

In recent weeks, Juma Fateh has traveled to various villages in Badakhshan, urging residents to arm themselves for “defending their honor and controlling gold mines.” However, reports indicate that some areas have refused to accept weapons or engage in this conflict, reflecting local concerns about the spread of civil war in the province.

Mediation efforts by senior Taliban officials, including Fasihuddin Fetrat, the head of the Taliban army staff, have so far failed. Sources confirm that special forces and military units have been deployed from Kandahar to Badakhshan, and the decision to suppress this commander is considered final; a situation that raises the likelihood of a bloody intra-group confrontation and once again highlights ethnic and structural divisions within the Taliban.