Afghanistan's seizure by the Taliban militants was swift and without any resistance from the Afghan army. The Taliban's assertion of forming an inclusive government to avoid another civil war seems to be difficult.
The hardline group is carrying meetings with Hamid Karzai in Kabul, the first president after the US trips invaded Afghanistan and Abdullah Abdullah, the second leader in the ousted administration after President Ashraf Ghani fled the nation earlier this month, who has now taken refuge in the UAE.
Most of the Taliban soldiers largely come from the majority ethnic Pashtun population, potent in the southern area of the country.
Despite having strong control over almost the entire country and superiority, the Taliban acknowledges that forming a stable government will need the support and hand of powerful warlords and representatives from the ethnic groups like - Uzbeks, Tajiks and Hazaras. Without their support, the nation would again recede into the same sort of internal conflicts that erupted in the 1990s.
The list of leaders the Taliban has got to take onboard.
Former Prime Minister, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar - 72
Leader of once a strong Hizb-e-Islami political party and the former prime minister of Afghanistan, Hekmatyar has been a long time survivor of Afghan politics. He was once part of Mujahideen fighters who got trained by the US during the cold war times period to combat the Soviet Union in the 1980s. Hekmatyar has been both a comrade and an enemy of the Taliban over the last 25 years.
The United States has upheld Hekmatyar as a “specially designated global terrorist.”
The former prime minister had openly backed the diocese attacks on the coalition troops after the US and NATO forces had arrived in the war-torn nation as a fallout of the September 11 terror attacks. He had close relations with Al Qaeda. In a recent interview, Hekmatyar had supported talks and elections to decide the next Afghan government and is also participating in discussions with the Taliban leaders.
Hekmatyar has established strong and deep ties with Pakistan's intelligence agencies that makes him a significant player for the Taliban.
Hamid Karzai, Former Afghan President, 63
Hamid Karzai is now negotiating with the Taliban who once wanted to execute him. As the world saw the Taliban entering Afghanistan and collapsing into dark days, with his successor Ghani fleeing the nation, Karzai decided to stay back. He posted a video message announcing that he will not leave the country. Though the video had no strong impact on the unfolding of the chaos in Kabul, it was particularly powerful as he appeared with his young granddaughters requesting to not make girls in the country suffer.
When Karzai reigned as the president, happen to have a tiff with the US over using drones and he rejected signing a security treaty that would have let the US military stay even after 2014.
Also Read: Taliban asks women to stay at home as fighters not trained to deal with them
Abdullah Abdullah, Former CEO, age 60
A doctor trend politician, Abdullah has seen Afghanistan taking a full motion. He has once worked as a consultant to the Northern Alliance leader - Ahmad Shah Massoud, who fought against the Russian and the Taliban.
Abdullah is a Tajik and is now on the table to mediate with the Talibans for a peaceful transfer of power in their hands.
Getting a peace deal on the land of Afghanistan is not an easy task and very few know that including Abdullah.
Abdullah Abdullah heads the High Council for National Reconciliation, which was believed to lead the now-dead intra-Afghan peace talks.
He had earlier ran for the presidential elections twice and came very close to victory in 2014. But a clash regarding the results prompted the former Secretary of State John Kerry to fly in and strike a deal of power-sharing between Ghani and Abdullah.
Abdul Rashid Dostum, Warlord and Former Vice President of Afghanistan, 67
This Uzbek warlord leader is a shotgun and an Afghan political leader who in his four decades of political fights, switched several allegiances.
Dostum was an important part of the Northern Alliance that battled the Taliban when they were last in power from 1996 to 2001.
Ghani's government received his support and Dostum remained the vice president for six years from 2013. The Uzbek warlord has several accusations levelled on him - from committing war crimes, including mass killings and ordering the rape of a political opponent. All these allegations have been refuted by Dostum.
Dostum had many years in Turkey citing health grounds, though rivals allege that he's trying to escape facing justice in Afghanistan. He came back to Afghanistan just when the Taliban was capturing the territories and it was anticipated that he would defend the iconic northern city of Mazar-e-Sharif from the barbaric militants. But in quick succession, the city fell under their control just like the other parts of the country, forcing Dostum to flee.
His current location is unknown.
Amrullah Saleh, Former Spy Chief and Vice President - 48
When former president Ghani fled the country, the former vice president of Afghanistan declared himself to be “the legitimate caretaker president”.
Saleh had associated with the Ghani’s government in 2017, positing as an interior minister and also channelled the country’s intelligence agency. The young leader has survived many assassinations by the Taliban, including one that was attempted last September.
Presently, Saleh is in the northern Panjshir valley, his stronghold and birthplace; pledges to not bow down to the jihadists. He has teamed with Tajik leader Ahmad Massoud, who has resolved to fight the Talibanis.
Ahmad Massoud, The Rebel Leader, 32
The young rebel leader - Ahmad Massoud, is the son of the slain celebrated Tajik Mujahideen commander Ahmad Shah Massoud who emerged as the face of resistance against the Soviet Union and the Taliban. Marching on his father’s footprint, Ahmad Massoud has raised an army of people ready to combat the Taliban in the Panjshir valley. However, all his resistance fight will depend on whether he gets considerable help and support from overseas, which he has already asked for in the supply of weapons.
In a contributing op-ed that got published in the Washington Post last week, Massaoud wrote that his forces were “prepared to once again take on the Taliban.” However, he added that their stock of weapons and ammunition would be depleted “unless our friends in the West can find a way to supply us without delay.”
Massoud is currently in talks with the Taliban, saying that he wants peace, but is ready for the fight. Taliban has sent hundreds of its fighters to Panjshir valley - the northern province in Afghanistan, which the hardline fighters could never gain.
Also Read: Taliban halts essentials supply to Andarab Valley; situation dire as children & elderly abducted
Ata Mohammad Noor, Provincial Leader, age 57
An ethnic Tajik leader - Ata Mohammad Noor has been a vital part of wars in Afghanistan since the Russian invaded the nation and was amongst the Taliban’s toughest enemies.
He was governor of northern Balkh province, which was one of the most wealthy areas in Afghanistan until he was expelled by Ghani in 2018. As the provincial capital of Mazar-e-Sharif was taken by the Taliban, Noor also fled the country.
Earlier this year, when the Taliban forces started gaining momentum, Noor was the first one to call upon new militia and rebels who were rising to fight the militants. Taking to his Twitter account, Noor alleged that the Afghan army surrendering to the Taliban fighters is a part of a larger “organized and cowardly plot” and swore to fight them.
Currently, he is in Uzbekistan.
Mohammad Karim Khalili, Hazara Leader, age 71
He was the vice president and a powerful figure in Afghanistan. Khalili belongs to the minority Hazara ethnic group and was constituted in the delegation of senior Afghan politicians who went to Pakistan after the Taliban’s August 15 takeover of Kabul.
Last week, in a Facebook post, Mr Khalili said he wishes that the Taliban’s top leadership would establish a stable political system in the country.
“The future of Afghanistan depends on it,” he said.