Taliban Leader In Peace Talks Was An Imposter. Stole An Undisclosed Amount Of Money

TWO VIEWS - With a camel in the foreground, U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Steven Finlayson pauses before returning to Forward Operating Base Geronimo after providing security in Nawa, Afghanistan, Nov. 17, 2010. Finlayson and his squad provided security while Afghan and U.S. soldiers gave out supplies as a goodwill gesture during the Muslim holiday of Id al-Adha, the Feast of Sacrifice. Finlayson is a team leader assigned to Headquarters Company, 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Mark Fayloga

Taliban Leader In Secret Talks Was An Impostor -- New York Times

KABUL, Afghanistan — For months, the secret talks unfolding between Taliban and Afghan leaders to end the war appeared to be showing promise, if only because of the appearance of a certain insurgent leader at one end of the table: Mullah Akhtar Muhammad Mansour, one of the most senior commanders in the Taliban movement.

But now, it turns out, Mr. Mansour was apparently not Mr. Mansour at all. In an episode that could have been lifted from a spy novel, United States and Afghan officials now say the Afghan man was an impostor, and high-level discussions conducted with the assistance of NATO appear to have achieved little.

“It’s not him,” said a Western diplomat in Kabul intimately involved in the discussions. “And we gave him a lot of money.”

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Update: Taliban Peace Broker Reportedly an Imposter -- FOX News

My Comment: I would love to know how much money this impostor received .... and who in the intelligence/diplomatic community failed in not spotting this. To call this an unmitigated disaster is an understatement .... and heads better roll.