‘Consensus has been reached, new govt soon’

KABUL: The Taliban and other Afghan leaders have reached a “consensus” on the formation of a government and cabinet under the leadership of the group’s top spiritual leader, and an announcement could come in a few days’ time, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday.

Taliban’s supreme commander Haibatullah Akhundzada will be the top leader of a governing council, Bilal Karimi, a member of the group’s cultural commission, said. Abdul Ghani Baradar, one of Akhundzada’s three deputies, is likely to be in charge of the day-to-day functioning of the government.

“Consultations on forming an inclusive Afghan government within the Islamic Emirate’s leaders with the leaders from previous government and other influential leaders have officially ended,” Karimi said. “They have reached a consensus. We’re about to announce a functioning cabinet and government in a few days, not weeks.”

Crowds seeking to flee Afghanistan flocked to its borders while long queues formed at banks on Wednesday, as an administrative vacuum after the Taliban’s takeover posed nationwide problems.

China calls Afghanistan a ‘heroic country’

China has described Afghanistan as a “heroic country” that never surrendered to foreign forces. “Chairman Mao Zedong once said that Afghanistan is a heroic country and has never surrendered. China and Afghanistan are friendly countries. China does not want to harm Afghanistan, and Afghanistan does not want to harm China. The two countries always support each other,” foreign ministry spokesperson, Wang Wenbin, said.