Dadullah sacking highlights Taliban rifts

Mansour Dadulluh, the Taliban's most prominent military commander, was sacked on 29 December, according to a statement released by the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, the name used by the Taliban.

Taliban spokesmen subsequently confirmed the dismissal, but did not provide details of Mansour Dadullah's misdeeds. Mullah Omar, the group's overall leader, previously advised him to follow the rules of the Islamic Emirate and "not to fall into the lap of others".

Dadullah rejected the reports, saying: "The shura has not yet told me anything about it. I do not believe it is the decision of Emir al-Mumineen [leader of the faithful] Mullah Muhammad Omar. If he truly dismisses me or summons me for execution, I will not defy him."

Previously known as Mullah Bakht Muhammad, Mansour Dadullah was virtually unknown outside Afghanistan until March 2007, when he was released from a Kabul prison as part of an exchange package for kidnapped Italian journalist Daniele Mastrogiacomo. After his release, he succeeded his older brother, Mullah Dadullah, as the Taliban's leading military commander and adopted the Dadullah name in May 2007.

The older Dadullah's brutal tactics and experience as a frontline commander meant his death at the hands of coalition special forces in May 2007 was considered a significant blow to the Afghan insurgency. While Mansour Dadullah failed to establish a similarly ruthless reputation, like his brother he boasted of Al-Qaeda links.

Mansour Dadullah's references to 'worldwide jihad' reflected an ideology closer to that of Al-Qaeda rather than the more traditional Taliban focus on Afghanistan. Like his brother, he also advocated controversial tactics, which were unpopular in Afghanistan.

Numerous theories have been put forward to explain Mansour Dadullah's dismissal, but his increasingly close relationship with Al-Qaeda was the real reason, according to a senior foreign official in Afghanistan who spoke to Jane's.

High and mid-level Taliban commanders contacted by Jane's had little respect for Dadullah. Some said he was only promoted in an attempt to safeguard his brother's networks and as a face-saving exercise to mitigate the psychological blow of Mullah Dadullah's death.

While the dismissal of an ineffective commander is unlikely to weaken the insurgency, it has highlighted divisions within the Taliban. The Taliban is increasingly split between those who follow the old leadership and those who take their cue from Al-Qaeda.

While Dadullah may not have been the first commander sacked since the Taliban was toppled in late 2001, his case will remind others to obey orders. Although the Taliban has not publicly criticised Al-Qaeda for hijacking the insurgency, Mullah Omar could publicly dismiss any commander who is too close to the foreign jihadists, therefore depriving them of the legitimacy of fighting for the 'commander of the faithful'. 448 of 1,516 words