Mawlawi Mehdi Mujahid, a dissident Hazara commander once aligned with the Taliban, briefly served as the Taliban's provincial chief of intelligence in Bamyan province in early 2022. However, he severed ties with the Taliban leadership, reportedly due to a dispute over control of the coal business trade in his home province of Saripul. The Taliban leaders described Mawlawi Mahdi's revolt against the Taliban as the "leader of the rebels" and went after his fighters. In August 2022, the Taliban reported his death, stating that their border forces shot him during a firefight in Herat province as he attempted to flee to neighboring Iran.
