On 7 September, the Taliban announced an interim government in Afghanistan, declaring the country an “Islamic Emirate”, several weeks after the militant group seized power in the country.

Taliban leaders were involved in a major spat at the presidential palace in the Afghan capital Kabul just days after the militants announced a new government in the nation, the BBC has revealed.

The broadcaster cited unnamed Taliban sources as saying that the row appeared to focus on who did the most to secure the militant group’s victory over the US.

The spat also reportedly pertained to the division of power in the new cabinet. The Taliban has officially denied the reports.

One source сlaimed that during an incident late last week, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, a Taliban co-founder and new prime minister, exchanged stern language with Minister for Refugees Khalil ur-Rahman Haqqani as their followers traded barbs against each other nearby.

The insiders told the BBC that the row had erupted because Baradar was unhappy over the structure of the interim Taliban government, insisting that the focus should be placed on diplomacy when it comes to the new cabinet’s policies.

Members of the Haqqani militant group and their supporters argued that the emphasis ought to be shifted to fighting, according to the sources. One of the Haqqani leaders, Sirajuddin Haqqani, is the interior minister in the new government.

The spat reportedly came to light amid conflicting reports about Baradar’s disappearance from public view. The report about the prime minister going to the city of Kandahar was followed by a Taliban spokesman telling the BBC that Baradar was “tired and wanted some rest”.

Some sources were cited by the BBC as saying the prime minister was expected to return to the capital Kabul in order to reject speculation about an alleged brawl in the new government.

Last week, the Taliban announced an all-male interim government in Afghanistan, where the militant group came to power on 15 August as a result of a rapid offensive amid the US and NATO troop exit from the country.