According to Iraf, footage broadcast by Afghanistan’s national television — under Taliban control — shows that Abdul Kabir, together with Amir Khan Muttaqi, the Taliban’s Foreign Minister, and a number of other officials of the group, performed the Eid al-Adha prayer at the Spidar Palace.
Images from the ceremony also show the presence of a number of diplomats from Islamic countries, particularly representatives of Arab country embassies.
Simultaneously, the Eid al-Adha prayer ceremony was held at the Arg with the attendance of Mullah Hassan Akhund, the Taliban’s Prime Minister, and a number of senior officials of the group.
Although the two venues are situated in close proximity — separated by no more than a single wall — the holding of separate Eid prayers by Taliban officials has once again drawn the attention of political observers to the internal divisions within the group.
Prior to his appointment as Minister of Refugees and Repatriates, Abdul Kabir served as the Political Deputy of the Taliban’s Prime Minister, with his office located at Spidar Palace. Since that time, he has continued to hold a number of official programs and religious occasions — including Eid prayers — at the same venue.
Some political observers believe that the continued holding of separate ceremonies by Taliban leaders may be a sign of factional divisions and diverging viewpoints within the group’s internal structure.
Taliban officials have nonetheless thus far made no official statement regarding the reason behind Abdul Kabir and Mullah Hassan Akhund holding separate Eid prayers.
During the previous government, the Arg served as the workplace of President Ashraf Ghani, while Spidar Palace was the base of Abdullah Abdullah, Chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation. During that era as well, separate Eid prayers were held by the two political currents involved in power.
