Among its members are 5 former detainees at Guantanamo.. The Taliban calls on the world to recognize its government and clarifies its position on international laws

The Taliban announced the formation of a new government after its return to power following the withdrawal of the Americans from Afghanistan. The movement was keen to send messages of reassurance to the world and clarify its position on international laws and agreements.

After 23 days of entering Kabul and the presidential palace, the Taliban announced on Tuesday the formation of a caretaker government and officials of some senior positions in the country by proxy, and the list included 33 names.

The first readings of the announcement of the Taliban movement, the caretaker government, show that it included the names of most of them from the movement itself and its leaders in the previous two decades.

The readings indicate that 14 of the announced names are former Taliban officials during its previous rule and 5 former Guantanamo detainees, in addition to 12 new figures from the second generation of the movement.

The Taliban said Mullah Muhammad Hassan Akhund would be the head of the new government in Afghanistan.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said during a press conference that the co-founder of the Taliban, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, would be deputy prime minister.

Baradar is respected by the various factions in the Taliban, and especially presided over the negotiations in Doha with the Americans, which led to the withdrawal of foreign forces from Afghanistan.

The Taliban spokesman added that the movement wants to establish good relations with the United States and neighboring countries, and called on the countries of the world to recognize the Afghan government and extend a helping hand to the Afghan people.

Among the appointments announced on Tuesday evening, Mullah Yaqoub – Mullah Omar’s son – will take over the Ministry of Defense, while the leader of the Haqqani Network, Sirajuddin Haqqani, will take over the Ministry of Interior.

Amir Khan Muttaki, who represented the Taliban in the Doha negotiations, was appointed as the Minister of Foreign Affairs, while the movement announced the appointment of Mawlawi Faseeruddin as acting army commander.

Sources told Al Jazeera that Mawlawi Abdul Hakim Sharia took the position of Acting Minister of Justice, while Mullah Abdul Latif Mansour held the position of Minister of Electricity and Water.

Abdel-Haq Wathiq was appointed head of intelligence, while Haji Idris was appointed head of the Central Bank.

And the media circulated other names that held ministerial portfolios, including tribal affairs, immigrants and the media.

Mujahid stressed that “the government is incomplete,” noting that the movement, which promised a “comprehensive” government, will try to “include other people from other regions in the country” into the government.

In turn, the Taliban leader asked the new government to adhere to the application of Sharia, in his first position since the movement took power in Afghanistan.

“I assure all citizens that the rulers will do everything in their power to uphold Islamic law in the country,” Mullah Hebatullah Akhundzadeh said in a statement.

Reuters reported that the movement’s leader’s statement confirmed the Taliban’s commitment to all international laws and agreements that do not violate Sharia.

Washington is worried

Early in the morning on Wednesday, US President Joe Biden said he was sure that Beijing, Moscow, Islamabad and Tehran would try to reach an understanding with the Taliban, which had formed a caretaker government, noting that those countries were trying to figure out what they should do to deal with the Taliban.

Biden described China as facing a real problem with the Taliban, as he put it.

In turn, US State Department spokesman Ned Price said, “We are concerned about the affiliations and records of some members of the new government announced by the Taliban. We are evaluating the government, which is made up of individuals who belong to the movement and are close to it and are devoid of women.”