The spokesperson for the Taliban, Mohammad Naeem, distanced the movement today, Monday, from reports claiming that the group was harboring al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in Afghanistan. The Taliban spokesperson told Sputnik that these news reports "have no relation to the truth." Previously, former acting director of the CIA, Michael Morell, announced that al-Zawahiri was living in Afghanistan and that the Taliban was sheltering him. Al-Zawahiri resurfaced after appearing in a video last Saturday, coinciding with the 20th anniversary of the September 11 attacks that terrorized the United States in 2001, resulting in nearly 3,000 deaths, following months of speculation about his potential death.
"We Will Not Allow al-Qaeda Presence"
The Taliban spokesperson, Mohammad Suhail Shaheen, confirmed last Saturday that the group had pledged in Doha during Afghan negotiations that it would not allow any centers for fundraising, training, or recruiting al-Qaeda members. He also stated that the movement would never permit the use of Afghan territory against any other country. Additionally, he mentioned that reports regarding al-Qaeda's presence in the country do not reflect the reality on the ground.
Refusal to Hand Over bin Laden
The Taliban had refused in 2001 to hand over former al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden at the request of the United Nations following the bombings of the U.S. embassies in Tanzania and Kenya. The movement also subsequently declined to surrender him or any al-Qaeda members after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center towers in New York.
