On January 21, 2023, the Afghanistan Liberation Movement (ALM), an anti-Taliban resistance group led by retired Afghan army colonel Abdul Matin Suleimankhel, claimed that Afghan Taliban emir Mullah Hibbatullah Akhundzada has been poisoned in Kandahar on the night of January 19. ALM's English-language tweet read: "The Terrorist Taliban pro claimed leader or copy of Mullah
In a recent article, Afghan writer Haroon Amirzada castigated international affairs commentators and journalists for endlessly discussing statements by Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada, whose face has not been seen and who might be dead.