New research indicates that with the re-establishment of the Taliban, the group’s power structure has transformed mullahs from their previously independent social and religious positions into government functionaries. The research, published by the Afghanistan Analysts Network, is based on interviews with dozens of mullahs in various provinces and finds that a significant portion of mullahs have not only become salaried employees of the Taliban regime but are also at the center of the group’s political system. The report states that by registering mosques, appointing imams, and directly paying salaries from the state budget, the Taliban are seeking to curb
