Editing Mullah Omar (section)

=== 2015 announcement of his death ===
{{Primary sources section
| date = April 2022
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On 29 July 2015, Abdul Hassib Seddiqi, the spokesman for Afghanistan's National Directorate of Security, said "officially" that Mohammed Omar had died at a hospital in [[Karachi]], Pakistan, in April 2013,<ref name=APNews_20150730>{{cite news |last=O'Donnell |first=Lynne |date=30 July 2015 |url= https://apnews.com/article/8aea0d55437f4bac9f0356cf0510a69b |title=Afghanistan says Taliban leader Mullah Omar died 2 years ago |newspaper=AP News |publisher=[[Associated Press]] |access-date=27 September 2021}}</ref> and the office of Afghan President Ashraf Ghani confirmed that information on his death was "credible".<ref name="BBC33703097">{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-33703097 |title=Mullah Omar: Taliban leader 'died in Pakistan in 2013' |date=29 July 2015|work=BBC News |access-date=25 September 2021}}</ref> Pakistani newspaper ''[[The Express Tribune]]'' reported that a former Taliban minister and current leadership council member, who spoke anonymously, said Omar died from [[tuberculosis]].<ref name="time-2015">{{Cite magazine|author=Nikhil Kumar|date=29 July 2015|title=Mullah Omar Taliban Death|magazine=Time|url=https://time.com/3976472/mullah-omar-taliban-death/|access-date=29 July 2015}}</ref><ref name="auto2">{{cite web|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2015/07/29/taliban-leader-mullah-omar/30819359/|title=Afghan intel agency: Taliban leader died two years ago |date=29 July 2015 |website=USA Today}}</ref><ref name="NYT_July2">{{cite news |last1=Goldstein |first1=Joseph |last2=Shah |first2=Taimoor |date=30 July 2015 |title=Death of Mullah Omar Exposes Divisions Within Taliban |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/31/world/asia/taliban-confirm-death-of-mullah-omar-and-weigh-successor.html |access-date=31 July 2015}}<!-- This reference is used in at least two more locations. --></ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Graham-Harrison |first=Emma |date=14 September 2021 |title=Questions in Kabul as two top Taliban leaders 'missing from public view' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/sep/14/questions-in-kabul-as-two-top-taliban-leaders-missing-from-public-view |access-date=14 September 2021 |website=[[TheGuardian.com]] |quote=The group's record may have fuelled the theories. The death of founding leader Mullah Mohammad Omar was concealed for two years and, during that time, the Taliban continued to issue statements in his name.}}</ref><ref name="BBC33703097" />

The following day, the Taliban confirmed that he was dead,<ref name="NYT_July">{{cite news|last1=Goldstein|first1=Joseph|last2=Shah|first2=Taimoor|date=30 July 2015|title=Death of Mullah Omar Exposes Divisions Within Taliban|newspaper=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/31/world/asia/taliban-confirm-death-of-mullah-omar-and-weigh-successor.html|access-date=31 July 2015}}<!-- This reference is used in at least two more locations. --></ref> but denied that he died in Pakistan.<ref name="Dawn">{{cite news|title=Mullah Omar did not die in Pakistan, say Afghan Taliban|url=http://www.dawn.com/news/1197371/|date=30 July 2015|work=Dawn News|access-date=31 July 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150801233916/http://www.dawn.com/news/1197371|archive-date=1 August 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> Other Taliban members stated that his death occurred in Afghanistan. According to an official statement by Pakistani defence minister [[Khawaja Asif]], "Mullah Omar neither died nor was buried in Pakistan and his sons' statements are on record to support this. Whether he died now or two years ago is another controversy which we do not wish to be a part of. He was neither in Karachi nor in [[Quetta]]."<ref>{{cite news|url=http://tribune.com.pk/story/933944/mullah-omar-did-not-die-in-pakistan-asif-tells-na/|title=Mullah Omar did not die in Pakistan, defence minister tells NA|work=The Express Tribune|date=7 August 2015|access-date=7 August 2015}}</ref>

Afghan officials report that Omar was buried in [[Zabul province]], a province in southern Afghanistan.<ref name="tel1">{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/afghanistan/11770159/Taliban-supreme-leader-Mullah-Omar-is-dead.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/afghanistan/11770159/Taliban-supreme-leader-Mullah-Omar-is-dead.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Taliban supreme leader Mullah Omar 'is dead' |date=29 July 2015 |access-date=29 July 2015|work=Telegraph UK|author=Muhammad Zubair Khan and Andrew Marszal}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Atta Mohammed Haqyar, head of Zabul's provincial council, believed that Omar was buried in a cemetery in Sarkhogan area of [[Shinkay District|Shinkay]] district in Zabul province. Several senior Taliban commanders have also been buried in Sarkhogan area. He further stated that the area had special significance for the [[Hotak]] tribe which Omar was from.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.khaama.com/search-underway-for-mullah-omars-grave-in-zabul-3750/|title=Search underway for Mullah Omar's grave in Zabul|access-date=13 August 2015|work=Khaama Press}}</ref>

Sources close to the Taliban leadership said his deputy, [[Akhtar Mansoor]], would replace him, although with the lesser title of Supreme Leader.{{citation needed|date=September 2021}} It was confirmed by a senior Taliban member that Omar's death was kept a secret for two years.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.yahoo.com/taliban-leader-facing-tension-top-official-quits-084411182.html|title=New Taliban leader facing tension as top official quits|date=4 August 2015|work=Yahoo News|access-date=6 August 2015}}</ref>

[[Fidai Mahaz]], a Taliban splinter group, claimed that Omar did not die of natural causes; rather he was killed in his hideout in Zabul province.<ref name="Mirror">{{cite web|date=21 August 2015|title=Why the Taliban murdered their own leader and the terrifying fallout now threatening the West|url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/taliban-murdered-leader-terrifying-fallout-6296603|access-date=22 August 2015|website=The Mirror}}</ref>

Many Islamist and jihadist movements expressed condolences following Omar's death, including [[Ajnad al-Kavkaz]],<ref>{{cite web |url= https://twitter.com/Weissenberg7/status/627178879925551104 |title=Ajnad al Kavkaz sending condolences to the Taliban on the death of Mullah Omar |last=Weiss |first=Caleb |date=31 July 2015 |website=Twitter }}</ref> [[Ansar Al-Furqan]],<ref>{{cite web |url= https://twitter.com/Weissenberg7/status/627183045003616256 |title=Ansar al Furqan's statement of condolences on the death of "Emir al Mumineen" Mullah Omar |last=Weiss |first=Caleb |date= 31 July 2015|website=Twitter }}</ref> [[Islamic Front (Syria)|Islamic Front]]'s [[Ahrar al-Sham]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2015/08/syrian-jihadists-honor-mullah-omar-praise-talibans-radical-state.php |title=Jihadists in Syria honor Mullah Omar, praise Taliban's radical state|website=The Long War Journal|date= 4 August 2015|last=Joscelyn |first=Thomas |publisher=Foundation for Defense of Democracies}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Westall |first= Sylvia |editor-last= Lidstone |editor-first= Digby |date=1 August 2015 |title=Syrian Islamist group Ahrar al-Sham mourns Taliban leader |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-afghanistan-taliban-syria-ahrar-idUSKCN0Q63BV20150801 |work= Reuters |location= BEIRUT}}</ref> [[Jaish Muhammad]],<ref>{{cite web |url= https://twitter.com/Weissenberg7/status/627466127212457984 |title=Jaish Muhammad, a foreign led group in #Syria, sends condolences on the death of "Emir al Mumineen" Mullah Omar. |last=Weiss |first=Caleb |date= 1 August 2015 |website=Twitter }}</ref> [[Ansar al-Din Front]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://twitter.com/Weissenberg7/status/627542649638125568 |title=Jabhat Ansar al Din coalition sending condolences on the death of 'Emir al Mumineen' Mullah Omar |last=Weiss |first=Caleb |date=1 August 2015 |website=Twitter }}</ref> [[Turkistan Islamic Party]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://twitter.com/Weissenberg7/status/627973122675838976 |title=TIP in #Syria sending condolences on the death of "Emir al Mumineen" Mullah Omar via @VegetaMoustache |last=Weiss |first=Caleb |date=2 August 2015 |website=Twitter }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://jihadology.net/2015/08/03/new-statement-from-%E1%B8%A5izb-al-islami-al-turkistani-in-bilad-al-sham-concerning-the-death-of-mulla-mu%E1%B8%A5mmad-umar/ |title=New statement from Ḥizb al-Islāmī al-Turkistānī in Bilād al-Shām: "Concerning the Death of Mullā Muḥmmad 'Umar" |last1=Zelin |first1= Aaron Y. |date=3 August 2015|website=JIHADOLOGY }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=المرصد السوري |url=http://www.syriahr.com/?p=127156 |title="الحزب الإسلامي التركستاني لنصرة أهل الشام" يعزي بـ "وفاة أمير المؤمنين الملا عمر" &#124; المرصد السورى لحقوق الإنسان |website=Syriahr.com |date=2 August 2015 |access-date=13 May 2016}}</ref> [[Jamaat Ansar al-Sunna]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://twitter.com/Weissenberg7/status/628383284343500800 |title=Jamaat Ansar al Sunnah sending condolences on the death of Mullah Omar |last=Weiss |first=Caleb |date=3 August 2015 |website=Twitter }}</ref> [[Jaish al Ummah]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://twitter.com/Weissenberg7/status/628550091436068864 |title=Jaish al Ummah sending condolences on the death of Mullah Omar via @VegetaMoustache |last=Weiss |first=Caleb |date=4 August 2015 |website=Twitter }}</ref> [[Jamaat-ul-Ahrar]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://twitter.com/Weissenberg7/status/628552760062013440 |title=TTP Jamaat ul Ahrar sending condolences on the death of 'Emir al Mumineen' Mullah Omar via @VegetaMoustache |last=Weiss |first=Caleb |date=4 August 2015 |website=Twitter }}</ref> [[Caucasus Emirate]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://twitter.com/Weissenberg7/status/628553590815236096 |title=Audio statement from the emir of the Caucasus Emirate Abu Usman on the death of Mullah Omar via @VegetaMoustache |last=Weiss |first=Caleb |date=4 August 2015 |website=Twitter }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://twitter.com/Weissenberg7/status/628590843528671232 |title=Written Arabic statement of condolences on death of 'Emir al Mumineen' Mullah Omar from the Caucasus Emirate ... |last=Weiss |first=Caleb |date=4 August 2015 |website=Twitter }}</ref> [[Jaish al-Islam]],<ref>{{cite web |url= https://twitter.com/Weissenberg7/status/628631649253748736 |title=Jaish al Islam in Palestine sending condolences on the death of 'Emir al Mumineen' Mullah Omar |last=Weiss |first=Caleb |date=31 July 2015 |website=Twitter }}</ref> [[Al-Nusra Front]], [[Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula|AQAP]], [[al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb|AQIM]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://twitter.com/Weissenberg7/status/628980812151681024 |title=Joint statement from AQIM, AQAP, and Al Nusrah (AQ in Syria) on death of "Emir al Mumineen" Mullah Omar |last=Weiss |first=Caleb |date=31 July 2015 |website=Twitter }}</ref> and [[Al-Shabaab (militant group)|Al-Shabaab]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://twitter.com/Weissenberg7/status/631942600031731712 |title=Shabaab sending condolences on the death of 'Emir al Mumineen' Mullah Omar via @VegetaMoustache |last=Weiss |first=Caleb |date=31 July 2015 |website=Twitter }}</ref>

Conversely, the Afghan government was unsympathetic to mourning his death; security forces were ordered to prevent citizens from publicly grieving Omar. A [[National Directorate of Security]] (NDS) spokesman said that Omar was "the biggest cause of war and backwardness in the modern history of Afghanistan", adding that any ceremony for Omar would be an "insult" to victims of the Taliban.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Kabul Unsympathetic To Mourning Mullah Omar |url=https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-mullah-omar-mourning-security-forces/27170421.html |access-date=2022-04-12 |website=RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty |language=en|last1=Najibullah |first1=Farangis }}</ref> Meanwhile, thousands of Afghans nationwide took part in rallies on 4 August, denouncing Omar.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-mullah-omar-mourning-security-forces/27170421.html|title = Kabul Unsympathetic to Mourning Mullah Omar| newspaper=Radiofreeeurope/Radioliberty | last1=Najibullah | first1=Farangis }}</ref>

After his death, the [[Taliban]] regained control of Afghanistan as the [[Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan|Second Islamic Emirate]] following the [[Fall of Kabul (2021)|Fall of Kabul]] during the [[2021 Taliban offensive|Taliban offensive]]. During this time the location of Mullah Omar's grave was indirectly revealed. The grave is situated in the Suri district of [[Zabul Province]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-11-06 |title=Taliban Reveal Burial Place of Founder Mullah Omar, Nine Years After Death |url=https://www.voanews.com/a/taliban-reveal-burial-place-of-founder-mullah-omar-nine-years-after-death-/6823191.html |access-date=2023-11-18 |website=Voice of America |language=en}}</ref>