Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar Denies Taliban Internal Disputes And Reportedly Injured

Taliban leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar. (Twitter/@Sarkariberozgar)

JAKARTA - Afghanistan's acting deputy prime minister Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar has appeared in a video interview posted to social media, denying reports of internal Taliban divisions and reports of him being injured.

"No, this is not true, I am fine and healthy," Mullah Baradar said in an interview with state TV posted to Twitter by the Taliban's political office in Doha.

"The media says that there is an internal dispute. There is nothing between us, that is not true," continued one of the respected and respected senior figures of the Taliban.

A short video uploaded to Twitter shows Mullah Baradar sitting on the sofa next to the interviewer with the microphone of Afghanistan's RTA television.

"There's nothing to worry about," he said.

Earlier, an official from the Taliban's cultural commission said on Twitter the interview would be broadcast on RTA TV to refute 'enemy propaganda'. Taliban officials have repeatedly issued denials in recent days regarding reports that Mullah Baradar was injured or even killed.

The denials followed days of rumors that Baradar's supporters had clashed with members of the Haqqani network, a Taliban-affiliated group based near the border with Pakistan.

Earlier, Taliban spokesman Suhail Shaheen denied the rumours, saying Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, issued a voicemail rejecting claims he had been killed or injured in the clashes.

"He said it was a lie and completely unfounded," Shaheen said in a message on Twitter.

Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, one of the founding members of the Taliban and once considered the head of the Taliban government, has long been out of sight in public. He was not on the ministerial delegation that met Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani in Kabul on Sunday.

In the clip, he says he was on his way when the visit happened and couldn't go back in time.

On Wednesday, Anas Haqqani, the younger brother of the Taliban's newly appointed Acting Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani, also issued a statement on Twitter denying reports of an internal rift in the movement.

The rumors follow speculation over rivalries between military commanders such as Haqqani and leaders from political offices in Doha such as Baradar, who are leading diplomatic efforts to reach a settlement with the United States.