Taliban has previously ruled in Afghanistan from 1996 until 2001. As it comes back to power we look at some key leaders who could lead Afghanistan.
After about 20 years of staying out of political power, the Taliban is back with a bang after proving the mighty Afghan army was no match to their fighting prowess. A predominantly Pashtun-led Islamic fundamentalist group, the Taliban has previously ruled in Afghanistan from 1996 until 2001. It was after the September 11 attacks that the US invaded Afghanistan and the Taliban was thrown out of power.
Now when the Taliban is back, the administration of the country has gone into their hands. Taliban has announced that the country would now be called the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. After Ashraf Ghani fled the country, the Taliban's top leadership is on the verge to take charge of the Afghanistan government. However, it is still unclear who the terror group will nominate to lead the country.
But before we go into the potential faces who could be nominated at the helm of affairs, let us look as to how the Taliban operates. The Rahbari Shura is the top council of leadership, which has the final say on any political matters within the Taliban.
Also known as the Quetta Shura, the Rahbhari Shura is largely responsible for key political and military decisions taken by the Taliban. So what will be its decision on appointing the top leader who will lead the country? Here we look into some of the present top leaders of the Taliban.
1. Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada
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Haibatullah Akhundzada is the current Chief of the Taliban outfit and has been at the helm for the past 5 years. When he took over as the Taliban head in 2016 he was seen as a fairly obscure figurehead with more experience in religious matters than military operations.
Akhundzada took the place of Mullah Mansour Akhtar after he was killed in a drone strike by the United States. To Akhundzada goes the credit of unifying the Taliban factions which were engaged in the power struggle.
Akhundzada got the full backing of al-Qaeda Chief Ayman al-Zawahiri who called him 'the emir of the faithful'.
(Image Source: Reuters)
2. Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar
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Born in Uruzgan province in 1968, Abdul Ghani Baradar is the co-founder of the Taliban along with Mullah Omar. He fought as a mujahideen against the Soviets in the 1980s. Baradar is currently the political head of the Taliban and is the public face of the organisation.
Reports suggest Baradar approached former Afghan President Ashraf Ghani back in 2001 with a potential deal after the Taliban's collapse. He was arrested by Pakistan in 2010. Baradar was freed three years ago from a Pakistani jail at the request of the US.
Abdul Ghani Baradar helped lead negotiations for the United States to withdraw troops from Afghanistan in 2020 after he got released from Pakistani prison.
(Image Source: Reuters)
3. Sirajuddin Haqqani
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The current deputy leader of the Taliban, Sirajuddin Haqqani is the son of Jalaluddin Haqqani, the founder of the Haqqani network, a US-designated terror group. Presently he also heads this group.
(Image Source: Twitter)
4. Mullah Yaqoob
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Mullah Yakoob is the present head of the Taliban's powerful military commission. The commission is responsible for looking after a vast network of shadow governors and battlefield commanders who execute the Taliban’s strategic operations.
Yakoob, 31 is the son of Taliban's founder, Mullah Omar. He is tipped to be the next supreme leader of the Taliban. It was Yaqoob who suggested Akhundzada's name in 2016 as the Taliban Chief.
Taliban have two offices in Pakistan. Mullah Yaqoob, son of Mullah Omar leads Quetta Shura and Siraj Haqqani heads Taliban Peshawar Shura.
(Image Source: Twitter)
5. Taliban spokesman Suhail Shaheen
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After the Taliban takeover of Kabul, a face that was seen too often on the TV screens and someone who conducted the press conference for the group is none other than Taliban spokesman Suhail Shaheen.
Suhail studied at the International Islamic University in Islamabad, Pakistan and later went to Kabul University. He secured the job of an editor at the Kabul Times, the first state-owned English newspaper, during the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.
Fluent in both Pashto and English, Suhail was appointed as the Deputy Ambassador at the Afghan Embassy in Pakistan and now serves as spokesman for the Taliban Political Office in Qatar.
(Image Source: File Photo)
