Where is Taliban's supreme leader?

KABUL • In the days since taking power in Afghanistan, a wide range of Taliban figures have entered Kabul, from hardened commandos to armed madrasah students to greying leaders back from years of exile.

There has been one major exception - the group's supreme leader. But the Taliban confirmed that Mr Hibatullah Akhundzada is in Afghanistan and could soon make his first public appearance.

"He is present in Kandahar. He has been living there from the very beginning," spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said on Sunday. "You will see him soon, God willing."

Mr Akhundzada - the so-called commander of the faithful - has shepherded the Taliban as its chief since 2016, when snatched from relative obscurity to oversee a movement in crisis.

After taking over the insurgency's reins, the cleric was tasked with the mammoth challenge of unifying an Islamist movement that briefly fractured during a bitter power struggle.

The infighting came as the group was hit with successive blows - the assassination of Mr Akhundzada's predecessor, Mullah Akhtar Mansour, and the revelation that its leaders had hidden the death of the Taliban founder, Mullah Mohammad Omar.

Little is still known about Mr Akhundzada's day-to-day role, with his public profile largely limited to the release of annual messages during Islamic holidays.

Apart from a single photograph released by the Taliban, the leader has never made a public appearance, and his whereabouts remain largely unknown.

Since taking control of Kabul in mid-August, the group had until now remained tight-lipped about his movements.

The Taliban has a long history of keeping its top leader in the shadows. Mr Omar was notorious for his hermit ways and rarely travelled to Kabul when the group was in power.

Instead, he remained largely out of sight, reluctant to meet visiting delegations. He stayed in his compound in Kandahar, the birthplace of the militant movement and centre of its iron-fisted government in the 1990s.

Still, his word was rule and no singular figure has emerged to command the movement with the same respect.

Ms Laurel Miller, head of the Asia programme at the International Crisis Group, said Mr Akhundzada "appears to have adopted a reclusive style similar" to that of Mr Omar.

The secrecy might also be fuelled by security reasons, she added, citing the assassination of Mullah Akhtar Mansour by a US drone strike.

Mr Akhundzada's absence follows years of rumours about his health, with chatter in Pakistan and Afghanistan suggesting he had contracted Covid-19 or had been killed in a bombing.

His secrecy comes at a sensitive time for the erstwhile insurgency. There are myriad Taliban factions comprising groups from across Afghanistan, representing a vast array of constituents.

As the Taliban transitions from fighting to governance, balancing the interests of its numerous factions will be crucial to consolidating power. Others suggest that the group may just be biding its time until US-led forces make their final exit from Afghanistan in the coming days.

"The Taliban considers itself in a state of jihad" as long as foreign troops are on Afghan soil and will likely keep its leader hidden until they leave, said Pakistan-based security analyst Imtiaz Gul.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE