The Taliban leadership has appointed Mawlawi Abdul Hakim, the chief justice of the group, as head of their 21-member negotiating team in Qatar, making the former chief negotiator Abbas Stanekzai his deputy.

Sources close to the Taliban said that most of the fatwas (rulings) of the group, particularly on war, are issued by Mawlawi Abdul Hakim and that he will attend the negotiating table with full authority.

Mawlawi Abdul Hakim was a mentor for many high-ranking Taliban members and was a close aide to Mullah Mansour, the former head of the group, according to Taliban sources. There had been a possibility of Hakim replacing Mansour after the latter was killed in 2016, said sources.

Thirteen members of the Taliban’s negotiating team are members of the leadership of the group.

In this episode host Nemat Rawan discusses the topic with the following guests:

Ahmad Sayedi, university lecturer

Sayed Hamid Anwari, political analyst

Sami Yousafzai, freelance journalist