Mullah Obaidullah the Akhund (Pashto: ملا عبيدالله آخوند; c. 1968 – March 5, 2010) was the Defence Minister in the Afghan Taliban government of 1996–2001 and then an insurgent commander during the Taliban insurgency against the Afghan government of Hamid Karzai and the US-led NATO forces. He was captured by Pakistani security forces in 2007 and died of heart disease in a Pakistani prison in 2010.
Obaidullah Akhund عبيدالله آخوند | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Second Deputy Leader of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan | |
| In office May 2002 – February 2007[1] | |
| Leader | Mullah Omar |
| Preceded by | Office established[2] |
| Succeeded by | Akhtar Mansour[1] |
| Defense Minister of Afghanistan | |
| In office April 1997 – September 9, 2001 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | c. 1968 Panjwai, Kandahar Province, Afghanistan |
| Died | March 5, 2010 (aged 41–42) Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan |
| Political party | Taliban |
| Occupation | Politician, Taliban leader |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  Taliban (1994–2010) |
| Years of service | 1994–2010 |
| Rank | Commander |
| Battles/wars | Soviet–Afghan War Afghan Civil War War in Afghanistan |
Biography
editObaidullah Akhund was born in the Panjwai district of Kandahar Province in southern Afghanistan[3] and was believed to be born in about 1968. He was of the Alakozai tribe.[4]
Obaidullah Akhund became the Defense Minister of Afghanistan in April 1997, and the second of two[5] top deputies to Mullah Omar, the spiritual leader of the Taliban movement. Obaidullah was seen as the "number three" man in the Taliban.[6] In late 2001 or early 2002, Obaidullah surrendered to Afghan Northern Alliance troops near Kandahar and was then released as part of an amnesty.[7]
He was one of the main Taliban military leaders in 2003 and was named to the Rahbari Shura (leadership council).[8] Abdul Latif Hakimi, who was captured by Pakistan in 2005, said that Obaidullah was one of two people with direct access to Mullah Omar and that Obaidullah had personally ordered insurgent attacks, including the killing of a foreign-aid official in March 2005.[3]
Obaidullah was captured by Pakistani security forces in February 2007 in Quetta, Pakistan.[6][9] He was the most senior Taliban official captured since the start of the war in Afghanistan in 2001.[10]
Obaidullah was freed in November 2007 in exchange for the release of more than 200 Pakistani soldiers captured by the Taliban. He was rearrested in February 2008[11][12] and died on March 5, 2010, of heart disease at a prison in Karachi, Pakistan.[13][14]
References
edit- ^ a b Sayed, Abdul (8 September 2021). "Analysis: How Are the Taliban Organized?". Voice of America. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
- ^ Ruttig, Thomas (March 2021). "Have the Taliban Changed?". CTC Sentinel. 14 (3). Combating Terrorism Center. Archived from the original on 11 February 2022. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
- ^ a b Gall, Calotta: "Pakistanis catch a top member of Taliban", page 4. International Herald Tribune, March 2, 2007
- ^ Felix Kuehn, Alex Strick van Linschoten (23 August 2012). An Enemy We Created: The Myth of the Taliban-Al Qaeda Merger in Afghanistan. Oxford University Press. p. 481. ISBN 9780199977239.
- ^ Osman, Borhan (24 November 2015). "Toward Fragmentation? Mapping the post-Omar Taleban". Afghan Analysts Network. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
- ^ a b 'Taleban leader held' in Pakistan, BBC News, March 2, 2007
- ^ "Profile: Mullah Obaidullah Akhund". Cooperative Research. Archived from the original on 2007-06-28. Retrieved 2007-03-05.
- ^ "Report: Taliban names anti-US leadership council". Haaretz. Reuters. June 24, 2003. Retrieved 23 September 2021.
- ^ Pakistan braces for Taliban backlash after arrest, Reuters, March 3, 2007
- ^ Report: Pakistan arrests one of Taliban's top three, CNN, March 2, 2007
- ^ "Musharraf Frees Taliban Militants - Newsweek and the Daily Beast". The Daily Beast. Archived from the original on 2012-10-15. Retrieved 2011-11-07.
- ^ "Pakistan rearrests Mullah Obaidullah". Long War Journal. 24 February 2008. Retrieved 15 February 2015.
- ^ "Taliban announces death of ex-defense minister in 2010". Fox News. February 13, 2012.
- ^ "Taliban announce death of ex-defense minister". Yahoo News. 13 February 2012. Retrieved 15 February 2015.