Salahuddin Ayubi, the Taliban's Uzbek commander who recently resigned from his position as the group's police chief in Zabul, has returned to his job.

The Taliban's police command in Zabul said Ayubi also met with Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada in Kandahar. Sources said that the Taliban leader did not accept his resignation.

In a statement, Ayubi was referred to as the Taliban's police chief in Zabul, while he had announced on September 12 this year that he had resigned from membership in the Taliban.

Salahuddin Ayubi told Afghanistan International that he had resigned from the Taliban’s post for personal and family reasons.

Sources also confirmed that Ayubi has returned to his duties as the group's police chief in Zabul after meeting with Hibatullah Akhundzadeh.

According to a statement from the Taliban's police command in Zabul, Salahuddin Ayubi discussed the security situation in the province during his meeting with the Taliban leader.

He had previously defected from the Taliban due to dissatisfaction.

After the Taliban's return to power in 2021, Ayubi was appointed as the chief of staff of the 203rd Mansoori Corps in Paktia, but the Taliban removed him from this position.

Later, he was introduced as the Deputy Minister of Policy and Planning of the Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development and was appointed as the police chief of Zabul Province in 2022.