Taliban excavate ex-leader Mullah Omar’s ‘getaway car’
The Hindu
The Taliban were formed by Mullah Omar, who led the hardline Islamist movement to power in 1996 after a bloody civil war, and imposed a strict interpretation of Islamic law on the country
The car used by Taliban founder Mullah Omar to escape being targeted by U.S. forces after the 9/11 attacks has been excavated in eastern Afghanistan, where it lay buried for more than two decades, officials said.
The white Toyota Corolla was buried in a village garden in Zabul province by former Taliban official Abdul Jabbar Omari, who ordered it to be dug up this week.
“It is still in good condition, only its front is a bit damaged,” Rahmatullah Hammad, the director of information and culture of Zabul province, told AFP.
“This vehicle was buried by the mujahideen as a memorial to Omar in 2001 to avoid it being lost,” he said.
Taliban media officials published pictures of the car being dug from its vehicular grave by men using hand shovels.
The Taliban want the car to be displayed in the capital’s national museum as a “great historical monument”, Hammad added.
The Taliban were formed in Kandahar by Mullah Omar, who led the hardline Islamist movement to power in 1996 after a bloody civil war, and imposed a strict interpretation of Islamic law on the country.
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