The Afghan Taliban has appointed Haiba-tullah Akhun-zada as its new leader after confirming Mullah Akhtar Mansour's death in a US drone strike over the weekend. Akhun-zada is known as a religious scholar and a senior judge in the group.
He was a close ally of Mansour, and was one of his two deputies. He is said to have issued many of the group's rulings on how Muslims should comply with the Taliban's extreme interpretation of Islam. Meanwhile just on Wednesday, the Taliban claimed responsibility for a suicide attack in Kabul, killing at least 10.