KABUL — Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban’s deputy chief minister for economic affairs, has returned to Kabul ahead of schedule, cutting short a UN-approved travel exemption that allowed him to stay in Qatar until March 3 for medical treatment.
Baradar, who had been in Doha since February 9, attended a ceremony in Kabul on Thursday, Feb. 20, to inaugurate several development projects.
The United Nations Security Council had approved his travel waiver under humanitarian grounds, but his early return has raised speculation amid reports of internal divisions within the Taliban leadership.
Baradar’s trip came as Taliban leaders face growing internal tensions. His return also coincides with the ongoing absence of Sirajuddin Haqqani, the Taliban’s interior minister, who has not been seen in public for nearly a month.
According to his office, at the Kabul event, Baradar claimed the Taliban were expanding trade and diplomatic relations with various countries.
Taliban officials also used the occasion to renew calls for Afghan investors to return and contribute to domestic projects.
