Secrets of Mansoor’s Iran travels revealed

ISLAMABAD: The Afghan Taliban chief slain in a US drone strike earlier this month frequently travelled to Iran’s border regions en route to western Afghanistan, The Express Tribune has learnt from sources in the group who, however, said neither Pakistani nor Iranian officials knew Mullah Akhtar Mansoor because he used a pseudonym.

“Mansoor Sahib would enter Iran en route to Afghanistan to supervise organisational matters. He would travel to western Afghanistan using unfrequented routes in the Iranian border regions,” said one highly credible Taliban source with knowledge of the slain leader’s travels.  “He [Mansoor] wouldn’t use the routes inside Afghanistan for fear of detection by American troops and their spies or by Afghan forces manning checkpoints.”



Where exactly did Mansoor travel to in Afghanistan? The Taliban source said he would visit Nimroz and nearby provinces using the pseudonym of Wali Muhammad. “He would secretly transit through the border regions of Iran and Pakistan to meet Taliban leaders and military commanders.”

The Iranians did not recognise him because he never travelled to the Islamic Republic using his real name. “He had lived in the Iranian border region for a long time as an ordinary man,” the source added. He also admitted that the slain Taliban chief had crossed into Balochsitan from Iran on the day a US pilot-less aircraft struck his car in Naushki district.

“He [Mansoor] crossed the border into Iran as a trader – an assumed identity he routinely used while travelling to the neighbouring countries. The Iranians didn’t know his real identity. The Pakistanis did not know who he really was. All his travel documents had a different name. People would not recognise him as many had not seen his face. This is why he easily crossed borders.”

The Taliban source quashed speculation that either Pakistan or Iran recognised that Wali Muhammad was actually the Afghan Taliban chief. “Our explanation clears Iran and Pakistan of all charges in the media,” he added.



He didn’t blame Mansoor either for what he called a ‘major tragedy’ for the Taliban movement. “A major resistance is ongoing [in Afghanistan] and we can use such techniques [using pseudonyms] in view of the security situation. It is a necessity to take advantage of such techniques. Mansoor Sahib should be praised for his courage.”

Why did his passport remain intact?

Mansoor’s passport remained intact in the May 21 US drone strike that gutted the car and turned it into a heap of mangled metal. The passport was reportedly found away from the wreckage of the car. “I believe the travel documents he had with him were destroyed, and later a copy of the passport was brought by immigration officials at the Taftan border crossing post,” the Taliban source said.

Taliban sources dismissed a media report that Mansoor had a family in Iran. “He would travel to Iran and stay there alone,” said another source. “Mansoor sahib had another place to live but he used to be on the move as part of his responsibilities as Amirul Momineen (commander of the faithful).”

How the Americans traced Mansoor?

How did the Americans track him down? Taliban sources believe their slain chief might have been traced due to the use of internet or cellphone. “There is also a possibility that Americans intelligence agents, who have a huge presence in the marketplaces of the border regions, might have identified him,” another Taliban source said.



“We do not blame any neighbouring country because American spies also monitor internet activities.  I think there could also be lack of care as Mansoor Sahib might have used a cellphone or internet and that revealed his route,” he said. There were media reports that Iranian officials might have tipped off the Americans about Mansoor.

Relations with Iran

Asked about reported ties between the Taliban and Iran, Taliban sources confirmed the group has political relations with Tehran and “we had made it public when representatives of the Qatar office visited Tehran in the past”.

A Taliban delegation, led by its former top negotiator Sayed Tayyeb Agha, had visited Tehran for the first time in June 2013 and then in May 2015. A high-level Taliban delegation, led by their military commission chief Ibrahim Sadr, had also travelled to Tehran this year. Officially, Iran has always denied these visits.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 30^th, 2016.