Asian & Middle Eastern Monarchs & Strongmen Codexery

Hibatullah Akhundzada

Reclusive cleric who became Taliban supreme leader and de facto ruler of Afghanistan.

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Unlike many Taliban leaders, he has no combat experience and previously served as an Islamic judge in the 1996–2001 Taliban government.[1] He was elected supreme leader in May 2016 after his predecessor was killed in a U.S. drone strike.[2][3] Akhundzada, the Taliban's supreme leader, is recognized for his fatwas concerning the group's affairs.[1]

Life and work

He is a Pashtun belonging to the Nurzai tribe, and his first name means "gift from God" in Arabic.[4] After the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, his family migrated to Quetta in Pakistan.[5] He joined the Taliban in 1994 and later became head of the military court in eastern Nangarhar Province.[6][3] On 25 May 2016, he was appointed as Taliban supreme leader, succeeding Mansour.[7]

In 2019, he appointed Abdul Ghani Baradar to lead peace talks with the U.S..[2][8] Taliban sources indicate Akhundzada's birth date is 19 October 1967, with his birthplace being the village of Nakhoney, located in Kandahar Province's Panjwayi District.[9] Following the 2001 collapse of the Taliban government, he assumed leadership of the group's council of religious scholars.[10]

What the cited sources add

A Voice of America report describes Akhundzada as an enigma to Afghans and the world, with only one known photograph circulating in media.[11] The same source states that Akhundzada decides everything in the Taliban regime, from appointing ministers to selecting district administrators.[11] The France 24 account notes that a Pakistan-based Taliban member said Akhundzada was "the centre of gravity for the Taliban... keeping the group intact"[3] A Voice of America article reports that Akhundzada's regime is defied by Afghans as authoritarian and illegitimate.[11]

The same source states that Akhundzada has shut schools and universities for women and suppressed free press.[11] A Pakistan-based Taliban member, who last met Akhundzada in 2020, reported to France 24 that the leader avoids modern technology, instead relying on landline calls and written correspondence.[3]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Hibatullah Akhundzada" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Dawi, "Unseen Taliban Leader Wields Godlike Powers in Afghanistan", Voice of America, 28 March 2023 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Hibatullah Akhundzada" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Taliban Brings Released Leader Into Peace Talks With U.S.", Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 25 January 2019; Wheeldon, "Who are the Taliban leaders ruling Afghanistan?", France24, 19 August 2021 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  3. "Dead or alive? On the trail of the Taliban's supreme leader", France 24, 3 December 2021. facts only, no text reused. france24.com
  4. Wikipedia, "Hibatullah Akhundzada" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Nabil, "Haibatullah, a village Mullah, 56, no military & political experience, Yaqoub, 24, no mil & politic exper, Saraj will b defacto leader.", 25 May 2016; Dawi, "Unseen Taliban Leader Wields Godlike Powers in Afghanistan", Voice of America, 28 March 2023; Burnett 2020, p. 57; "Afghan Taliban announce successor to Mullah Mansour", BBC News, 25 May 2016; Burnett 2020, p. 57; "Afghan Taliban announce successor to Mullah Mansour", BBC News, 25 May 2016; "Hibatullah's Roots were Non-Political and Reclusive", TOLOnews, 29 May 2016 ( en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Hibatullah Akhundzada" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Mashal, "Taliban's New Leader, More Scholar Than Fighter, Is Slow to Impose Himself", The New York Times, 11 July 2016; "Profile: New Taliban chief Mawlawi Hibatullah Akhundzada", BBC News, 26 May 2016; "Database", www.afghan-bios.info (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Hibatullah Akhundzada" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Burnett 2020, p. 57; "The Taliban is back. Who are the leaders of the group?", TRT World, January 2026; Mashal, "Taliban's New Leader, More Scholar Than Fighter, Is Slow to Impose Himself", The New York Times, 11 July 2016; "Profile: New Taliban chief Mawlawi Hibatullah Akhundzada", BBC News, 26 May 2016; Mashal, "Taliban's New Leader, More Scholar Than Fighter, Is Slow to Impose Himself", The New York Times, 11 July 2016 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Hibatullah Akhundzada" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Profile: New Taliban chief Mawlawi Hibatullah Akhundzada", BBC News, 26 May 2016 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  8. "Taliban Brings Released Leader Into Peace Talks With U.S.", Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 25 January 2019. facts only, no text reused. rferl.org
  9. Wikipedia, "Hibatullah Akhundzada" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "The Story of Haibatullah Akhundzada's Rise to the Highest Position of the Taliban Movement", www.alestiklal.net; "هيبة الله آخوند زاده.. شيخ الحديث الذي يقود طالبان English: Hibatullah Akhundzada... the Hadith scholar who leads the Taliban. Al Jazeera Net —", الجزيرة نت; Balkhi, "Introduction of Sheikh Moulavi Hibatullah Akhunzada (may Allah safeguard him), Leader of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan", www.alemarahenglish.af, 14 December 2016; "Prosecution's application under article 58 for a warra en.wikipedia.org
  10. Wikipedia, "Hibatullah Akhundzada" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Profile: New Taliban chief Mawlawi Hibatullah Akhundzada", BBC News, 26 May 2016; Burnett 2020, p. 57; Findlay, "Who are the Taliban 2.0", Financial Times, 16 August 2021; "Afghan Taliban says Haibatullah Akhunzada is new leader", Aljazeera; Azami, Dawood, "Mawlawi Hibatullah: Taliban's new leader signals continuity", BBC News, 26 May 2016; "Afghan Taliban says Haibatullah Akhunzada is new leader", Aljazeera; Provost 2021, p. 123 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  11. Dawi, "Unseen Taliban Leader Wields Godlike Powers in Afghanistan", Voice of America, 28 March 2023. facts only, no text reused. voanews.com

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Hibatullah Akhundzada (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

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Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.

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