Afghan Biographies

Haqqani, Sirajuddin


Name Haqqani, Sirajuddin
Ethnic backgr. Pashtun
Date of birth 1975
Function/Grade Minister of Interior acting
History and Biodata

1. Former Minister of Interior
Ali Ahmad Jalali (resigned 20050928),
Engineer Zarar Ahmad Moqbil (Moqbel, Moqbal) (2008),
Hanif Atmar (2008), Hanif Atmar 20100102 confirmed for second term as Minister of Interior, resigned 20100606.
Gen Bismillah Khan Muhammad Mohammadi (2010 - 20120804) fired by Wolesi Jirga
Gen. Mujtaba Patang (20120915 - 20130722 sacked) acting Minister of Interior
Umer Daudzai Minister of Interior (20130901) confirmed by Wolesi Jirga 20130925.
Omar Daudzai Acting Minister of Interior (20141208)
acting Sattar General Ayub Salangi (20141209)
Nur ul-Haq Ulumi (20150127-20160224 resigned)
Taj Mohammad Jahid (20160224) acting (20160409) confirmed (20170106)
Wais Barmak nominated (20170813, 20171204 confirmed- 20181224 fired)
Amrullah Saleh (20181224) stepped down (20190119)

Hamdullah Mohib National Security Adviser and Acting Interior Minister (20190202)
Massoud Andarabi Former Deputy Intellligence Chief of Afghanistan (20190211, 20201121, 20210319)

Hayatullah Hayat acting (20210319)
Gen Abdul Satar Mirzakwal (20210619)
Sirajuddin Haqqani (20210907)

First Deputy Minister for the Ministry of Interior:
Mawlawi Mohammad Daoud Muzmel (20220224)

Deputy Security Minister for the Ministry of Interior:
Sadar Mullah Mohammad Ibrahim(20210921)


Deputy interior minister in security affairs:
Mawlavi Faizullah Jamal, ex policy and strategy aid to the Ministry of Interior now  deputy interior minister in security affairs Mawlavi Faizullah Jamal, former policy and strategy aid to the Ministry of Interior (20220920)

Deputy Minister of Interior:
Mawlawi Nur Jalal (20211005, 20221221)

 

Deputy Minister of Interior (Counternarcotic):
Mullah Abdul Haq (20211005)

Director of the office of the deputy Minister of Counter-Narcotics:
Haseebullah Ahmadi (20221101)


Interior Ministry Spokesperson:
Qari Saeed Khosty Saeed Khostai  Qari Saeed Khosti (20211006)
Hedayatullah Hedayat, deputy spokesman of the MoI (20211211)
Mawlawi Zainullah Abir Mullah Abdul Nafee Takwar, Spokesperson (20220326)
Qari Bismillah Habib, deputy Spokesperson, (20220326)
Deputy director general of internal security of the Ministry of Interior:

Mawlawi Shirahmad Rouhani (20220221)

Commander of the internal operations unit of the Ministry of Interior:

Mawlawi Ahmad (20220221)

2. Previous Function:
Minister of Interior acting (20210907)

3. Biodata:
haqqani_sirajuddin

Alhaj Sirajuddin "Siraj" Haqqani (a.k.a.  "Khalifa") was born between 1973 and  1978 in Afghanistan. He is a Pashtun warlord from Jadran tribe and military leader who fights against American and coalition forces from his base within North Waziristan in Pakistan, where it is claimed he provides shelter to Al Qaeda operatives.

His father is Jalaluddin Haqqani, a famous mujahideen and military leader of pro-Taliban forces in Afghanistan and Pakistan. His forces have been accused by the coalition forces of carrying out the late-December 2008 bombing in Kabul, Afghanistan at an Afghan elementary school near an Afghan barracks that killed several schoolchildren, an Afghan soldier, and an Afghan guard; no coalition or US personnel were affected.

The son of Jalaluddin Haqqani, Sirajuddin has increasingly taken over the day-to-day operations of the Haqqani Network from its Pakistani tribal base in North Waziristan. Anas Haqqani is the brother of Sirjuddin Haqqani, the head of the Haqqani Network.

The younger Haqqani belongs to the new generation of Afghan insurgents who are instrumental in transforming the poorly educated largely rural ranks of Taliban fighters into a sophisticated fighting force.

While his father was a leading figure in the anti-Soviet jihad, the young Sirajuddin was not an impressive fighter in his youth, said Brig. Amir Sultan Tarar, a retired ISI officer known as Col. Imam, in a Jan. 2010 interview with The Wall Street Journal.

"The child didn't take part in the war," Tarar told The Wall Street Journal. It wasn't until his early 20s—sometime around 1990—that the younger Haqqani "became an active participant in our struggles," Tarar added.

After the 2001 fall of the Taliban, there were some hopes in US military circles that the senior Haqqani would join the NATO-led operations in Afghanistan. Following the new policy to negotiate with the Taliban, there have been some attempts made to strike a deal with the Haqqani network leadership. But senior US intelligence officials say such talks are much harder under the younger Haqqani’s leadership since he lacks the deep roots and pragmatism of his father.

The younger Haqqani – like other Taliban leaders of his generation such as Mullah Zakir follows a more extremist Islamist ideology. He has also been keen to play down his father’s ties with the CIA.
 

Despite its distinct origins and its separate links to the outside world, to sponsors in the Gulf region and old allies in Pakistan, which allowed it to retain a certain autonomy of action, the Haqqani network is an integral part of the Taleban movement and not an entity, or even organisation, apart from it. In the broader Taleban movement which is a network of networks, the Haqqanis’ is just one its biggest and certainly its most well-known one.(20120923)

The FBI has offered a reward of up to $5 million for information that directly leads to Haqqani’s arrest. The FBI said he is linked to an attack in Kabul in 2008 that killed an American citizen, and is believed to have been involved with cross-border attacks targeting U.S. troops and coalition forces in Afghanistan.

Sirajuddin Haqqani is the leader of the Ghilzai tribes who straddle the border between Pakistan and eastern Afghanistan. It is this branch of the Taliban – the founding Haqqani faction – that is thought to be the closest to the Pakistani establishment, despite it being the most notorious. Over the past year, the Haqqanis have been responsible for facilitating strategic peace agreements between the TTP and the government of Pakistan. Although once strong and dominant, the recent assassination of Ayman al-Zawahiri, who was reported to be residing in a safehouse belonging to Haqqani, has been exploited by the Kandahari faction to weaken the Haqqani position.
 

Last Modified 2023-03-04
Established 2011-07-27