Taliban barred journalists from attending both the funeral prayer and burial of the mother of their founder and former leader Mullah Mohammad Omar, local sources said on Sunday.
According to the sources, the funeral prayer was held in Kandahar province, while the burial took place in the district of Suri in neighbouring Zabul province on Sunday. Both events were attended by a large number of Taliban officials, but reporters were not allowed access, the sources said.
Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid confirmed that Mullah Omar’s mother had died. The Taliban said earlier that the funeral prayer would be held at the Eidgah mosque in Kandahar.
Mullah Omar, the founder and first leader of the Taliban, ruled most of Afghanistan from 1996 until 2001. His rule was marked by strict social controls and harsh punishments under the group’s interpretation of Islamic law.
His government drew international condemnation in 2001 after it ordered the destruction of the ancient Buddha statues in Bamiyan, a move widely denounced as an attack on world cultural heritage.
Omar also sheltered al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the United States, a decision that led to the US-led invasion of Afghanistan. Omar lived in hiding until his death in 2013, which the Taliban did not publicly disclose until two years later.
