Mujahideen leader
Born: N/A
Profession: Military Offcial
Affiliation(s): Haqqani network, Mujahideen
Citizenship: Afghan
Profile Mawlawi Jalaluddin Haqqani (جلال الدين Øقاني) (born c. 1950), father of Sirajuddin Haqqani, is an Afghan military leader known for his involvement in fighting the Soviets in Afghanistan in the 1980s, especially during Operation Magistral, as well as for being invited by President Hamid Karzai to become Prime Minister of Afghanistan. He belongs to the Jadran, a Pashtun tribe from Paktia province of Afghanistan. More recently, he has led pro-Taliban militants in Afghanistan and Pakistan. He has also been alleged with having introduced suicide bombing to the region.He is sometimes reported to be leader of what the western media calls the Haqqani network. Personal life Haqqani was born in 1950, and has has two wives - one Afghan and the other is an Arab. His Arab wife is believed to be living in the United Arab Emirates. Haqqani is fluent in Arabic. His son, Sirajuddin Haqqani is also active in the war against the US backed Afghan government. Sirajuddin has also played a major role in coordinating and leading the Pakistani Taliban in their battles against the Pakistani troops in Waziristan. Mujahideen leader Originally a member of the Hezb-i Islami of Mawlawi Mohammad Yunus Khalis, Haqqani was admired by certain afghans during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan and ensuing civil war. He gained a reputation for being a diehard fighter, and impressed ISI officials who were very active amongst the various Mujahidden groups during the Soviet war. He was key US and Pakistani ally in resisting the Soviet Union after its 1979 invasion of Afghanistan. Haqqani even visited President Ronald Reagan at the White House. Operating against the Soviets and the Afghan government from a safe haven in North Waziristan. He reputedly attracted generous support from prosperous Arab countries compared to other resistance leaders. In fact, he received an extraordinary share of the CIA and Saudi funded weapons that were shipped to the Afghan Mujahideen fighting the Soviet Union and their puppet Communist government in Afghanistan. Soon, Haqqani became the ISI's man, and they provided a safe haven for him in Pakistan. ISI officials would devise strategies or battle plans and Haqqani would simply execute them. In 1991 he was the first resistance leader to capture a city, Khost, from the Najibullah government. After Dr. Najibullah's government finally fell in 1992 to the forces of Ahmad Shah Masood, and a Mujahideen government was setup, Haqqani was appointed as the country's Justice Minister. Relations with the Taliban Haqqani was not originally a member of the Taliban. In 1995, just prior to the Taliban's occupation of Kabul, he switched his allegiance to them. In 1996-97, he served as a Taliban military commander north of Kabul, and was accused of ethnic cleansing against local Tajik populations. During the Taliban years in power, he served as the Minister of Borders and Tribal Affairs and governor of Paktia Province. He held on to this position until the Taliban were removed from power in late 2001. Haqqani and Osama bin Laden Haqqani is close with Osama bin Laden and has had a long relationship with him that goes back to the Afghan-Soviet war. Haqqani protected Osama bin Laden, and even helped him to establish a fighting force in Afghanistan. He is believed to have also played a role in helping bin Laden escape from Afghanistan and into Pakistan when Afghan and American forces came looking for him in late 2001. Post-2001 In October, 2001, Haqqani was named the Taliban's military commander. He may have had a role in expediting the escape of Osama Bin Laden. With his base in Khost under repeated American air attack, it is believed he crossed the border into the Waziristan region of Pakistan himself in November or December. Four Guantanamo detainees -- Abib Sarajuddin, Khan Zaman, Gul Zaman and Mohammad Gul -- were captured and held because American intelligence officials received a report that one of them had briefly hosted Haqqani shortly after the fall of the Taliban. It is claimed Haqqani has since been offered positions of authority by President Hamid Karzai's government, including the offer of the post of Prime Minister. In July 2008, CIA officials confronted Pakistan officials with evidence of ties between Inter-Services Intelligence and Jalaluddin Haqqani. The ISI denies these allegations. A September 2008 airstrike which targeted Haqqani, resulted in the deaths of between ten and twenty-three people. The US missile strike hit the house of Haqqani in the village Dandi Darpa Khail in North Waziristan and a close-by seminary. The madrasah, however, was closed and Haqqani had previously left the area. Haqqani has been accused of involvement in the 2008 Indian embassy bombing in Kabul and the February 2009 Kabul raids. Role in Waziristan Conflict Haqqani and his son, Sirajuddin Haqqani, are believed to be commanders of the Taliban mujahideen forces in the Pakistan agency of Waziristan. The success of the mujahideen fighters in the two-year Waziristan Conflict against the Pakistani para-military forces pressured the government to agree to the 2006 Waziristan Accord. In the absence of political will to confront militants with regular Pakistan Army units, a cease-fire agreement (allowing Taliban fighters to operate with impunity in Waziristan as long as Pakistani law is followed and the Taliban do not launch raids into neighboring Afghanistan) was reached. Haqqani Today Now Haqqani has become the second most important figure in the Taliban, second only to Mullah Omar himself. He has even been credited with introducing suicide bombing in Afghanistan. The story today goes that the Americans have tried unsuccessfully to get him to change sides and go against Mullah Omar. They have offered him cabinet posts in Hamid Karzai's government, the Prime Minister role, and have even resorted to kidnapping members of his family and throwing them in jail so they can use them as leverage. The Pakistanis are playing a game with the Americans by pretending to go against Haqqani. They are thinking long term. They believe that if one day, the Americans decide to abandon Afghanistan, Haqqani would be used to take over Kabul, especially since much of the forces that were under the control of the now deceased Ahmad Shah Masood are disarmed. Recent events and actions taken by the American forces indicate that the Americans are aware of Pakistan's game, and while they don't admit it in the open, they have decided to go it alone (without Pakistan) in their fight against what they now call the Haqqani Network. Place of Birth: Afghanistan Height: 5'8'' Gender: Male Description: Slight build, Hair: Dark; Eyes: Brown; Complexion: Olive.
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