Is Hekmatyar silent or was silenced?
Author: Fazlmanullah Mumtaz, Afghanistan expert, especially for Sangar
Everyone knows that Mr. Hekmatyar is a newsmaker, a person who creates news. In the most difficult conditions, he appeared and spoke in the press.
Ustad Rabbani had a famous quote about him that said, "If you want to know Hekmatyar's dreams and secrets, listen to his Friday prayer sermons." In addition, Benazir Bhutto, the former Prime Minister of Pakistan, said in her memoirs (Daughter of the East), “Hekmatyar is a news-maker. Mr. Hekmatyar's Friday sermons were like his weekly press conferences."
After recent events, he sometimes gave political, military, and even religious advice to the Taliban, but the Taliban never heeded his advice. He later criticized the Taliban, causing his preaching to be banned and his office besieged.
For more than three months now, he has been silent at, and his meetings have also decreased.
His fans post his old sermons on social media. This indicates a shortage of press materials and publications. On the other hand, it shows the tough confrontation between the Taliban and him. With this action, the Taliban are determined to punish those who are present before those who are absent.
At first, Hekmatyar came up with the idea that his association with the Taliban might attract their attention and bring him closer to them. On the other hand, the departure of his political rivals, especially Jamiat-e-Islami, from the scene of power and politics was a source of temporary happiness for him. But this happiness did not last long, and he never imagined that Talib would forbid him from the imamate in his mosque - Iman.
Now let's see how long his patience will last. History itself shows.
But this is certain because Mr. Hekmatyar is dependent on the press and the media. This was a bitter message for Hekmatyar and his inner circle, who proudly said that others had left and we had stayed.
Can it be called a party stroke?
