Talibs May Lose Positions in Afghanistan After Killing of Key Commander

With the killing of key Taliban leader Mawlawi Ibrahim Shiwani during an Afghani special-forces raid in the west of the country, the positions of radical movement may decay in the region, state army officials are saying.

Afghanistan’s armed forces eliminated Shiwani on Sunday in the course of a sweep of the militants in the Bala Buluk district in Farah province, Army General Taj Mohammad Jahid told the Xinhua News Agency.

According to official data, the total number of Taliban members terminated  during that operation has reached 15.

“Units of the Afghanistan army executed an operation sweeping Taliban terrorist group militants on Sunday morning and terminated 15 extremists, including Mawlawi Ibrahim Shiwani, who was considered in Taliban as deputy governor of the Farah Province,” the agency said, citing the words of the General.

Jahid suggested that the elimination of Shiwani would lead to a notable weakening of the Taliban across Farah province.

Mop-up operations were also sustained in other districts in Farah’s, as well as in nearby districts.

The Taliban Islamic fundamentalist movement was founded in 1994 and ruled the country from 1996 to 2001. It’s spread throughout Afghanistan and regularly clashes with legitimate governmental forces, claiming the lives of thousands of civilians.