Hibatullah Akhundzada

His Excellency

Amir al-Mu'minin

Mullah

Mawlawi

Sheikh al-Hadith

Hibatullah Akhundzada
His Excellency; Amir al-Mu'minin; Mullah; Mawlawi; Sheikh al-Hadith; ; Hibatullah Akhundzada
هبت الله اخندزاده‎
2nd Supreme Leader of Afghanistan
	Incumbent
	Assumed office ; 15 August 2021
Prime Minister	Hasan Akhund
Deputy	First Deputy; Sirajuddin Haqqani; Second Deputy; Mohammed Yaqoob; Third Deputy; Abdul Ghani Baradar;
Preceded by	Ashraf Ghani (as President); Mohammed Omar (as Supreme Leader);
3rd Leader of the Taliban
	Incumbent
	Assumed office ; 25 May 2016; Acting: 21–25 May 2016
Deputy	First Deputies; Himself; Sirajuddin Haqqani; Second Deputy; Mohammed Yaqoob; Third Deputy; Abdul Ghani Baradar;
Preceded by	Akhtar Mansour
4th First Deputy Leader of the Taliban
	In office; 29 July 2015 – 25 May 2016; Serving with Sirajuddin Haqqani
Leader	Akhtar Mansour; Himself (Acting);
Preceded by	Akhtar Mansour
Succeeded by	Sirajuddin Haqqani
2nd Chief Justice of the Taliban
	In office; c. 2001 – 25 May 2016
Leader	Mohammed Omar; Akhtar Mansoor; Himself (Acting);
Preceded by	Noor Mohammad Saqib
Succeeded by	Abdul Hakim Ishaqzai
Head of the Eastern Zone Military Court
	In office; c. 1996 – c. 2001
Leader	Mohammed Omar
Head of the Military Court of Kabul
	In office; c. 1995 – c. 2001
Leader	Mohammed Omar
Personal details
Born	26 March 1957 (age 67); Nakhuni, Panjwayi District, Kandahar Province, Kingdom of Afghanistan
Political party	Taliban (1994–present)
Parents	Muhammad Akhund (Father)
Residence	Kandahar
Occupation	Politician, Soldier
Profession	Scholar, Cleric, Jurist
Ethnicity	Pashtun
Religion	Sunni Islam
Movement	Deobandi
Military service
Allegiance	Afghanistan
Branch/service	Hezb-i Islami Khalis; Taliban;
Years of service	1987–present
Rank	Marshal
Commands	Afghan Army
Battles/wars	Afghan conflict Soviet–Afghan War; Afghan Civil War (1989–1992); Afghan Civil War (1992–1996); Afghan Civil War (1996–2001); War in Afghanistan (2001–2021); ;

Hibatullah Akhundzada (Pashto: هبت الله اخونزاده; born 26 March 1957) is an Afghan politician, soldier, scholar, cleric, and jurist who is the 2nd and the current Supreme Leader of Afghanistan since 2021 and as well as the 3rd Leader of the Taliban since 2016 following a drone that strike killed his predecessor, Akhtar Mansour. Since the Fall of Kabul in August 2021, Akhundzada became Afghanistan's Supreme Leader with absolute powers over the country.

In 2020, he sended Abdul Ghani Baradar to Doha to hold peace talks with the U.S. by meeting the then-U.S. Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo where they signed the US–Taliban Deal which made the U.S agree to Withdraw its Troops from Afghanistan.^[3]^[4]

Akhundzada also held a phone conversation with then-U.S. President, Donald Trump the same year where they agreed to have diplomatic relationships with the two countries if Trump won the election even though it never happened as Trump lost the election. However, while announcing the talk, Trump did not mention Akhundzada's name.^[5] In July 2021, while recalling his phone conversation with Akhundzada, Trump got his name wrong referring to Akhundzada as "Mohammed" rather than "Hibatullah".^[6]

Akhundzada led the Taliban to victory against the Afghan government in a 2021 military offensive—while the U.S. withdrawal was still underway—then became Afghanistan’s absolute ruler and imposed a totalitarian^[c] Islamist government. His government has been criticized for sweeping infringements on human rights, including the rights of women and girls to work and education. On his orders, the Taliban administration has prevented most teenage girls from returning to secondary school education. In July 2022, while attending a religious gathering in Kabul, Akhundzada lashed out at the demands of the international community on his government, ruling out any talks or compromise on his "Islamic system" of governance.

Notes[change | change source]

↑ Deputy Abdul Kabir served as acting prime minister from 17 May to 17 July 2023 while Akhund was recovering from an illness.^[1]^[2]
↑ Marshal has been Akhundzada's military rank in the Afghan Army since 2021.
↑ Sources describing his government as totalitarian:^[7]^[8]^[9]^[10]^[11]

References[change | change source]

↑ Mohammad Farshad Daryosh (17 May 2023). "Mawlawi Kabir Appointed Acting PM As Mullah Hassan Akhund is Ill: Mujahid". TOLOnews. Archived from the original on 24 May 2023. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
↑ Adeeb, Fatema (9 September 2023). "Prime Minister's Absence From Meetings Raises Questions". TOLOnews. Archived from the original on 10 September 2023. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
↑ "Taliban Brings Released Leader Into Peace Talks With U.S." Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 25 January 2019. Retrieved 22 April 2023.
↑ Wheeldon, Tom (19 August 2021). "Who are the Taliban leaders ruling Afghanistan?". France24. Retrieved 22 April 2023.
↑ "Trump says he had 'good talk' with Taliban leader in first discussion between US president and group since 9/11". The Independent. 3 March 2020.
↑ "'Let's Call Him Mohammad': Trump Forgets Name of Taliban Leader". Haaretz. 25 July 2021.
↑ Sakhi, Nilofar (December 2022). "The Taliban Takeover in Afghanistan and Security Paradox". Journal of Asian Security and International Affairs. 9 (3): 383–401. doi:10.1177/23477970221130882. S2CID 253945821. Afghanistan is now controlled by a militant group that operates out of a totalitarian ideology.
↑ Madadi, Sayed (6 September 2022). "Dysfunctional centralization and growing fragility under Taliban rule". Middle East Institute. Retrieved 28 November 2022. In other words, the centralized political and governance institutions of the former republic were unaccountable enough that they now comfortably accommodate the totalitarian objectives of the Taliban without giving the people any chance to resist peacefully.
↑ Sadr, Omar (23 March 2022). "Afghanistan's Public Intellectuals Fail to Denounce the Taliban". Fair Observer. Retrieved 28 November 2022. The Taliban government currently installed in Afghanistan is not simply another dictatorship. By all standards, it is a totalitarian regime.
↑ "Dismantlement of the Taliban regime is the only way forward for Afghanistan". Atlantic Council. 8 September 2022. Retrieved 28 November 2022. As with any other ideological movement, the Taliban's Islamic government is transformative and totalitarian in nature.
↑ Akbari, Farkhondeh (7 March 2022). "The Risks Facing Hazaras in Taliban-ruled Afghanistan". George Washington University. Archived from the original on 14 January 2023. Retrieved 28 November 2022. In the Taliban's totalitarian Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, there is no meaningful political inclusivity or representation for Hazaras at any level.

Bibliography[change | change source]

Burnett, M. Troy (2020). Nationalism Today: Extreme Political Movements Around the World [2 Volumes]. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1440850004.

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[3] Deputy Abdul Kabir served as acting prime minister from 17 May to 17 July 2023 while Akhund was recovering from an illness.^[1]^[2]

[4] Marshal has been Akhundzada's military rank in the Afghan Army since 2021.

[14] Sources describing his government as totalitarian:^[7]^[8]^[9]^[10]^[11]

[1] Mohammad Farshad Daryosh (17 May 2023). "Mawlawi Kabir Appointed Acting PM As Mullah Hassan Akhund is Ill: Mujahid". TOLOnews. Archived from the original on 24 May 2023. Retrieved 18 September 2023.

[2] Adeeb, Fatema (9 September 2023). "Prime Minister's Absence From Meetings Raises Questions". TOLOnews. Archived from the original on 10 September 2023. Retrieved 18 September 2023.

[5] "Taliban Brings Released Leader Into Peace Talks With U.S." Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 25 January 2019. Retrieved 22 April 2023.

[6] Wheeldon, Tom (19 August 2021). "Who are the Taliban leaders ruling Afghanistan?". France24. Retrieved 22 April 2023.

[7] "Trump says he had 'good talk' with Taliban leader in first discussion between US president and group since 9/11". The Independent. 3 March 2020.

[8] "'Let's Call Him Mohammad': Trump Forgets Name of Taliban Leader". Haaretz. 25 July 2021.

[9] Sakhi, Nilofar (December 2022). "The Taliban Takeover in Afghanistan and Security Paradox". Journal of Asian Security and International Affairs. 9 (3): 383–401. doi:10.1177/23477970221130882. S2CID 253945821. Afghanistan is now controlled by a militant group that operates out of a totalitarian ideology.

[10] Madadi, Sayed (6 September 2022). "Dysfunctional centralization and growing fragility under Taliban rule". Middle East Institute. Retrieved 28 November 2022. In other words, the centralized political and governance institutions of the former republic were unaccountable enough that they now comfortably accommodate the totalitarian objectives of the Taliban without giving the people any chance to resist peacefully.

[11] Sadr, Omar (23 March 2022). "Afghanistan's Public Intellectuals Fail to Denounce the Taliban". Fair Observer. Retrieved 28 November 2022. The Taliban government currently installed in Afghanistan is not simply another dictatorship. By all standards, it is a totalitarian regime.

[12] "Dismantlement of the Taliban regime is the only way forward for Afghanistan". Atlantic Council. 8 September 2022. Retrieved 28 November 2022. As with any other ideological movement, the Taliban's Islamic government is transformative and totalitarian in nature.

[13] Akbari, Farkhondeh (7 March 2022). "The Risks Facing Hazaras in Taliban-ruled Afghanistan". George Washington University. Archived from the original on 14 January 2023. Retrieved 28 November 2022. In the Taliban's totalitarian Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, there is no meaningful political inclusivity or representation for Hazaras at any level.

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