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New Afghan Taliban leader calls for unity, promises to continue insurgency in first message.

Associated Press
Published | Updated
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    An Afghan newspaper headlines pictures of the new leader of the Afghan Taliban, Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansoor, left, and Mullah Mohammad Omar, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Saturday, Aug. 1, 2015. The new leader of the Afghan Taliban vowed to continue his group's bloody, nearly 14-year insurgency in an audio message released Saturday, urging his fighters to remain unified after the death of their longtime leader. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul) (The Associated Press)

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    Supporters of a Pakistani religious group 'Jamaat-ud-Dawa' attend funeral prayers for Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar at a mosque in Islamabad, Pakistan, Saturday, Aug. 1, 2015. Afghanistan's Taliban on Thursday confirmed the death of Mullah Omar, who led the group's self-styled Islamic emirate in the 1990s, sheltered al-Qaida through the 9/11 attacks and led a 14-year insurgency against U.S. and NATO troops. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed) (The Associated Press)

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    Supporters of a Pakistani religious group 'Jamaat-ud-Dawa' offer funeral prayers for Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar at a mosque in Islamabad, Pakistan, Saturday, Aug. 1, 2015. Afghanistan's Taliban on Thursday confirmed the death of Mullah Omar, who led the group's self-styled Islamic emirate in the 1990s, sheltered al-Qaida through the 9/11 attacks and led a 14-year insurgency against U.S. and NATO troops. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed) (The Associated Press)

KABUL, Afghanistan – The new leader of the Afghan Taliban leader has called for unity among his fighters, promising to continue insurgency in his first message.

The audio message purportedly from Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansoor also included comments about peace talks, though it wasn't immediately clear whether he supported them or not.

Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid sent the audio to journalists and others Saturday.

The Taliban on Thursday confirmed that former leader Mullah Omar had died and said they elected Mansoor as his successor. The Afghan government announced Wednesday that the reclusive mullah had been dead since April 2013.

Mullah Omar was the one-eyed, secretive head of the Taliban, whose group hosted Osama Bin Laden's al-Qaida in the years leading up to the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.