Who are the main Taliban leaders in the future Afghan government? | In turn, the new figures of Afghan power

The taliban prepare to form a government in Afghanistan after its resounding victory after twenty years of conflict. Several of the key men in the group that now controls this country are called to the dome of power.

Some of the leaders, who returned to power after the Taliban regime which lasted from 1996 to 2001, had barely appeared in public until now, a way of protecting themselves, among other things, from the American drones which had plagued the group for many years. years.

Malawians Hibatullan Akhundazada

He has been the supreme leader of the Taliban since 2016, after his predecessor, Mullah Akhtar Mansour, was killed in a US drone strike in Pakistan.

The 60-year-old leader owes his popularity among the Taliban to his extensive knowledge of Islamic law and jurisprudence. Hibatullah headed the judiciary under the previous Taliban regime.

Only a few images of the leader, with the long black beard, circulate on the web, although he is recognized by the annual audio and text messages he usually publishes on the eve of the Muslim Eid festivities.

Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar Akhund

He is one of the most well-known faces among the Taliban and his name has started to ring strongly as the next president of Afghanistan.

Mullah Baradar, 53, is the co-founder of the Taliban militia and was for years considered the right hand of Mullah Omar, the founding leader of the insurgent movement.

He is currently the head of the Taliban political bureau in Qatar, where he played an important role in the negotiations with the United States which resulted in the landmark agreement in February 2020 setting a date for the final withdrawal of foreign troops. .

This senior Taliban leader was arrested in the Pakistani port city of Karachi in 2010, and released eight years later. The United States has reportedly requested his release to launch the Afghan peace process.

Baradar arrived in Afghanistan on Tuesday after declaring the end of the war and the victory of the Taliban with the capture of Kabul on Sunday, in what was apparently the first official trip by a Taliban leader to the country since the fall of the insurgent regime in 2001.

Sirajuddin Haqqani

He is the head of one of the most feared Taliban groups in Afghanistan: the Haqqani Network, founded by his father, Jalaluddin Haqqani, to fight the Soviet invasion in the 1980s.

The group, described as terrorist by the United States, was associated with the Taliban when the Islamist group came to power in 1996.

Sirajuddin, 48, is known in the group for his military acumen and war strategies; and operates its own insurgent network, with alleged bases in Pakistan.

He has been accused of being the mastermind behind some of the deadliest attacks against US and NATO forces in Afghanistan.

The United States has a few sketches of his face on their list of most wanted terrorists.

Mollah yaqqob

He is the son of the founder of the Taliban movement and is currently the group’s military leader.

The 31-year-old is said to have overseen all of the Taliban’s land operations since last year, taking care of troop management and overseeing all of their commanders.

He was one of the first Taliban leaders to order his fighters, after conquering Kabul on Sunday, to treat the population well and not to enter civilian homes without permission.

Since 2016, he has been part of the “Rehbari Shura” group, the highest decision-making body of the Taliban militia.

Zabihullah Mujahid

The official spokesperson for the Taliban is probably one of the most mentioned leaders in the media, although his face is unknown.

For the first time in decades, he appeared in public on Tuesday at the Taliban’s first official press conference after conquering the country, sporting a black turban and a long, carefully brushed beard.

Mujahid communicated with reporters through calls, texts and emails; and via Twitter, he disseminated statements and made statements on Taliban or allied websites from undisclosed locations.

Under the previous Taliban government in 1996, he was associated with the Afghan Ministry of Culture and Information, according to a New York Times report published in 2011.

Suhail shaheen

He rose to prominence after the Taliban formed their political bureau in Doha, where he became their spokesperson.

According to the Afghan-Bios database, Shaheen studied at the International Islamic University in Islamabad.

Under the previous regime, Shaheen, who speaks fluent English and is a prolific author, was editor of the state newspaper Kabul Times, second secretary of the Afghan embassy in Pakistan and spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry.