Taliban leader’s brother killed by mosque bomb on eve of peace deal

A BOMB tore through a mosque frequented by the leader of the Afghan Taliban in a possible attempt to assassinate him just as his movement was due to sign a peace deal with America.

The timed device, detonated under the prayer leader’s chair near the Pakistani city of Quetta, killed Haibatullah Akhundzada’s younger brother, Hafiz Hamdullah, as he led the service.

At least four other people died, including the militant leader’s father, Mohammad Khan; and his son, Ahmadullah, was among the 20 wounded.

Haibatullah was said to have regularly attended the mosque in Kuchlak in the past and there were unconfirmed reports he had been expected to lead Friday prayers.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the blast but Graeme Smith, a consultant with International Crisis Group, said it was “a fair guess that somebody wanted to disrupt the nascent peace process”.

A Pakistani official told The New York

Times that the Taliban chief had been expected at the mosque, but when he did not arrive, his brother led prayers instead.

Video of the aftermath of the bombing showed the wounded being carried out of the mosque on blankets.

Quetta has long been a refuge for senior Taliban members and was said to hold the insurgents’ ruling council after their emirate was toppled from power in the wake of the 9/11 attack.

Kuchlak has hosted Afghan refugees for decades and it has been a rich recruiting ground for the Taliban.

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) has in the past targeted Taliban members in Quetta as part of its battle over territory in Afghanistan, but the timing of the attack raised speculation the bombing was linked to ongoing peace negotiations.

Taliban envoys are said to be close to securing a deal that would end the 18-year-long US military entanglement in Afghanistan. The deal would involve a withdrawal of US troops in return for guarantees that the country will not be used as a launch pad for terror groups such as al-qaeda.

US President Donald Trump is keen to bring the troops home, but many Afghans fear a withdrawal would leave the government battling the Taliban alone.

The US and the Taliban spent days trying to finalise the agreement earlier this month, with sources saying only technical details remained to be signed off. While the deal is the most significant attempt yet to find an end to what has become the world’s deadliest conflict, it is also viewed with suspicion

Hardline Taliban commanders believe there should be no settlement short of a complete defeat of the Kabul government and its backers.