Who are the most important and closest people to Haibatullah who participate in important decisions?
Author: Walid Siraj, former Afghan civil servant.
Despite three years of Taliban rule in Afghanistan, the group remains unknown and little is known about its key figures. Unlike the previous government, where the press reported all such cases based on the right of access to information, in this illegitimate and illegal regime that came to power through violence and murder, all issues are decided in a certain circle, hidden from the public. The country is run in absolute secrecy and the people are kept away from all issues. And the press can only operate within the framework defined by the Taliban.
The purpose of this article is to introduce four key members who assist Mullah Haibatullah in important military appointments. Although three of these people are deputy ministers of defense and interior, their authority is much higher than that of the ministers of these two bodies.
1 - MULLAH HAIBATULLAH belongs to the Noorzai tribe, one of the largest branches of the Durrani Pashtun tribe. This tribe constitutes the largest number of Taliban fighters. The Noorzai had a minimal presence in the previous government and were constantly in conflict with the Achakzai tribe. Hence, most of them chose to side with the Taliban. Mullah Haibatullah, having formed a strong coalition of prominent figures, which will be discussed below, practically tried to use the capabilities of the ishaqzai, alikuzay, kakar, and Alizai tribes to control the main smuggling corridors on the one hand and to displace his rivals - the main figures from other tribes, such as the ishaqzai, barakzai, and pupalzai, on the other hand. These tribes represented Kandahar in the Republican government.
2 - SADR IBRAHIM belongs to the alikuzay tribe and considers himself its leader. Although some others also claim to be the leader of this tribe, Sadr Ibrahim has the most power in the Taliban administration, especially in the army, hence others also recognize him as the leader of his tribe. Sadr Ibrahim is the deputy minister of security of the Taliban. He was the head of the Taliban military commission or shadow minister of defense during the war with the republic, after Zakir Qayum, and before Mullah Yaqub. He is the closest and most trusted person of Haibatullah. Currently, the powers of the ministry of Interior belong to this person. It is worth noting that some time ago, Sirajuddin Haqqani wanted to make some changes in the ministry of Interior, but Sadr Ibrahim prevented this. No changes are made in the ministry of Interior without his permission, and in fact, he is the eye and ear of Mullah Haibatullah in this ministry.
3 - MULLAH ZAKIR QAYUM - the second most influential person, the current deputy minister of defense, and the person in charge of the border. From the alizay tribe. The alizay tribe lives in the Helmand and Kandahar regions and is one of the most important branches of the Durrani family. In the early years of the Taliban's defeat and escape, Zakir Qayum was captured by coalition forces and transferred to Guantanamo. During his imprisonment, Zakir Qayum, after a long relationship with Arab Salafis, joined the Salafi movement and partially lost his popularity among the Taliban. After some time, he was released from Guantanamo and upon returning to Pakistan, he again joined the Taliban. Zakir Qayum briefly served as the head of the Taliban military commission but was dismissed by Akhtar Mansour after the death of Mullah Omar. The reason for his dismissal was the tribal rivalry between the ishaqzai and alizay in Helmand province over the control of drug trafficking. But after the assassination of Akhtar Mansoor and the election of Mullah Haibatullah as the leader of the Taliban, Zakir Qayyum was appointed head of the Peshawar Commission in the last years before the fall of the Republic. He became one of the closest and most important figures close to the Taliban leader.
4 - MULLAH FAZEL MAZLUM - First Deputy Defense Minister of the Taliban. He is from the kakar tribe, which is also one of the largest branches of the durrani tribe. Mullah Fazel has close ties to al-Qaeda and some other terrorist groups such as the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan and Chechen militants. He was the Chief of General Staff of the Taliban during the first period of rule and participated in operations in the north along with Manan Niyazi (who was later killed). After the defeat of the Taliban in 2001, Mullah Fazel was arrested by Marshal Dostum and handed over to the Americans. He was also transferred to Guantanamo.
5 - SHEIKH ABDULHAKIM is the current Qaziyulquzzat - the chief judge of the Taliban. Even though he has no military background, he is considered one of the most important and close people of Haibatullah for two reasons. Firstly, Abdulhakim is the head of the ishaqzai tribe, one of the important branches of the durrani tribe. And secondly, even though Abdulhakim does not have bright military experience, he is a major religious sheikh and mufti of the Taliban. The activities of this group receive religious cover under his fatwas.
Thus, the Kandahar team consists of:
1 - Haibatullah (Nurzai-Durrani)
2 - Sadr Ibrahim (Alizai-Durrani)
3 - Abdulqayum Zakir (Alizai-Durrani)
4 - Mullah Fazel Mazlum (Kakar-Gargasht, there are few people of this tribe and they are covered by the Durrani).
5 - Sheikh Abdulhakim Haqqani (Ishaqzai-Durrani).
The unification of these large and powerful tribes in Kandahar, as well as the Nurzai tribe, which has the most soldiers among the Taliban, led to the fact that the entire Taliban force was gathered in one place.
Although Mullah Yaqub is the son of the first Taliban leader Mullah Omar, he does not have a special position in Kandahar, since he belongs to the hutak tribe. In the conflicts of Kandahar, the tribe of a person is important. The Hutakies are one of the smallest tribes and are not related to the Durrani tribe, i.e. they belong to the Ghilzai tribe. Therefore, they are not taken seriously in the power deals in Kandahar.
