Abdul Ghani Baradar
Encyclopedia
Mullah
Abdul Ghani Baradar (Dari
/Pashto
: عبدالغنی برادر; born c. 1968), also called Mullah Baradar Akhund or Mullah Brother, is a co-founder of the Taliban movement in Afghanistan and an Afghan
Taliban leader. The deputy of Mullah Mohammed Omar
and leader of the militant Quetta Shura
in Pakistan
, Baradar was largely seen as the de facto leader of the Taliban as of 2009. He was captured in Pakistan by Pakistani forces, on February 8, 2010, in a morning raid.
, Orūzgān Province
, Baradar is a Durrani
Pashtun
(Pathan) of the Popalzai tribe
. Baradar fought with the Afghan mujahideen during the Soviet-Afghan War and afterwards operated a madrassa in Maiwand
, Kandahar Province
alongside his former commander, Mohammad Omar (the two may be brothers-in-law via marriage to two sisters). In 1994 he helped Omar found the Taliban.
During Taliban rule
(1996–2001), Baradar held a variety of posts. He was reportedly governor of Herat
and Nimruz Province
, and/or the Corps Commander for western Afghanistan. An unclassified U.S. State Department document lists him as the former Deputy Chief of Army Staff and Commander of Central Army Corps, Kabul
while Interpol
states that he was the Taliban's Deputy Minister of Defense.
invaded Afghanistan and deposed the Taliban with the help of Afghan forces. Baradar fought against the U.S.-supported Northern Alliance
and, according to Newsweek
, "hopped on a motorcycle and drove his old friend [Omar] to safety in the mountains" in November 2001 as Taliban defenses were crumbling. One story holds that a U.S.-linked Afghan force actually seized Baradar and other Taliban figures sometime that month, but Pakistani intelligence secured their release. Another story reported by Dutch journalist Bette Dam contends that Baradar actually saved Hamid Karzai
's life when the latter had entered Afghanistan to build an anti-Taliban force.
Whatever the case, a new Afghan government to replace the Taliban was organized in accordance with the December 2001 Bonn Agreement
; Hamid Karzai served as interim leader and later President of Afghanistan. Baradar now found himself fighting international forces
and the newly formed Afghan government. Many fellow Taliban commanders were killed over the years following the initial invasion, including Baradar's rival Mullah Dadullah
, killed in Helmand in 2007. Baradar eventually rose to lead the Quetta Shura
and became the de facto leader of the Taliban, directing the insurgency from Pakistan. Temperament-wise he has been described as acting as "an old-fashioned Pashtun tribal head" and a consensus builder. Despite his military activities, Baradar was reportedly behind several attempts to begin peace talks, specifically in 2004 and 2009.
(ISI) and the US Central Intelligence Agency
(CIA) in either Baldia Town
, Karachi
, Pakistan
, or at the Madarassa Khuddamul Quran (45 km NE of Karachi) during a morning raid. The White House took 3 days to confirm the capture.
CNN
quoted U.S. officials who said the capture could represent a "turning point" in the struggle with the Taliban. The presence of Taliban in Karachi is not unprecedented; previous reports have indicated that the city hosts a sizable network of Taliban militants, serves as a major source of funds, and may even be the location of Mullah Omar
.
. Another Taliban leader denied that he was in custody.
, told the BBC
that Mullah Baradar was being questioned. However, there was no confirmation from Pakistani officials that it was a joint U.S.-Pakistani operation. The day before, Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik
had denied the details of a New York Times
article that broke the story, stating that there was no joint U.S.-Pakistani raid and that "We are a sovereign state and hence will not allow anybody to come and do any operation. And we will not allow that. So this (report) is propaganda". Besides the newspaper Dawn
, the story was largely ignored in the Pakistani press when it initially broke.
But others, including Ahmed Wali Karzai
, said Pakistan captured Baradar to stop his negotiations with the Karzai government, so that Pakistan would get a seat at the table.
Still others said that the capture was a lucky accident, as Baradar was picked up along with others in a raid based on U.S.-supplied intelligence. Another view contends that Pakistani General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani
is using the series of Taliban arrests to help extend his own career beyond his slated November retirement date, the theory being that this would raise his standing among American policymakers and thus press the Pakistani government to retain him.
has emerged as the Taliban military leader after Baradar's arrest.
Mullah
Mullah is generally used to refer to a Muslim man, educated in Islamic theology and sacred law. The title, given to some Islamic clergy, is derived from the Arabic word مَوْلَى mawlā , meaning "vicar", "master" and "guardian"...
Abdul Ghani Baradar (Dari
Dari (Eastern Persian)
Dari or Fārsī-ye Darī in historical terms refers to the Persian court language of the Sassanids. In contemporary usage, the term refers to the dialects of modern Persian language spoken in Afghanistan, and hence known as Afghan Persian in some Western sources. It is the term officially recognized...
/Pashto
Pashto language
Pashto , known as Afghani in Persian and Pathani in Punjabi , is the native language of the indigenous Pashtun people or Afghan people who are found primarily between an area south of the Amu Darya in Afghanistan and...
: عبدالغنی برادر; born c. 1968), also called Mullah Baradar Akhund or Mullah Brother, is a co-founder of the Taliban movement in Afghanistan and an Afghan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
Taliban leader. The deputy of Mullah Mohammed Omar
Mohammed Omar
Mullah Mohammed Omar , often simply called Mullah Omar, is the leader of the Taliban movement that operates in Afghanistan. He was Afghanistan's de facto head of state from 1996 to late 2001, under the official title "Head of the Supreme Council"...
and leader of the militant Quetta Shura
Quetta Shura
The Quetta Shura is a militant organization composed of top leadership of the Afghan Taliban, that is believed to be based since about 2001 in the city of Quetta in the Balochistan province of Pakistan. The Shura was formed after the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan was toppled in late 2001 and the...
in Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, Baradar was largely seen as the de facto leader of the Taliban as of 2009. He was captured in Pakistan by Pakistani forces, on February 8, 2010, in a morning raid.
Early life and Taliban career
Born in Weetmak village, Deh Rahwod DistrictDeh Rahwod District
Deh Rahwod is a district in Oruzgan Province, southern Afghanistan, and the name of the town that serves as district seat. Deh Rahwod lies along the Helmand River...
, Orūzgān Province
Oruzgan Province
Orūzgān or Urōzgān , also spelled Uruzgan or Rōzgān , is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. It is in the center of the country, though the area is culturally and tribally linked to Kandahar in the south. Its capital is Tarin Kowt...
, Baradar is a Durrani
Durrani
Durrani or Abdali is the name of a chief Pashtun tribal confederation in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Originally known by their ancient name Abdali later as Durrani they have been called Durrani since the beginning of the Durrani Empire in 1747. The number of Durranis are estimated to be roughly 16%...
Pashtun
Pashtun people
Pashtuns or Pathans , also known as ethnic Afghans , are an Eastern Iranic ethnic group with populations primarily between the Hindu Kush mountains in Afghanistan and the Indus River in Pakistan...
(Pathan) of the Popalzai tribe
Popalzai
Popalzai or Popalzay are Durrani Pashtuns.-Origin:According to Hyat Khan's history of Afghanistan, from their progenitor Bor Tareen, otherwise known as Abdal, are descended two main divisions: the Zirak and the Panjpai...
. Baradar fought with the Afghan mujahideen during the Soviet-Afghan War and afterwards operated a madrassa in Maiwand
Maiwand
Maiwand is a village in Afghanistan and the district center of Maiwand District of Kandahar Province. It is located 50 miles northwest of Kandahar....
, Kandahar Province
Kandahar Province
Kandahar or Qandahar is one of the largest of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. It is located in southern Afghanistan, between Helmand, Oruzgan and Zabul provinces. Its capital is the city of Kandahar, which is located on the Arghandab River. The province has a population of nearly...
alongside his former commander, Mohammad Omar (the two may be brothers-in-law via marriage to two sisters). In 1994 he helped Omar found the Taliban.
During Taliban rule
Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan
The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan was founded in 1996 when the Taliban began their rule of Afghanistan and ended with their fall from power in 2001...
(1996–2001), Baradar held a variety of posts. He was reportedly governor of Herat
Herat
Herāt is the capital of Herat province in Afghanistan. It is the third largest city of Afghanistan, with a population of about 397,456 as of 2006. It is situated in the valley of the Hari River, which flows from the mountains of central Afghanistan to the Karakum Desert in Turkmenistan...
and Nimruz Province
Nimruz Province
Nimruz is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan, in the south-west of the country on the borders of Iran and Pakistan. The name Nimruz means "mid-day" or "half-day" in Persian. Nimruz covers 41,000 km² and has a population of 149,000...
, and/or the Corps Commander for western Afghanistan. An unclassified U.S. State Department document lists him as the former Deputy Chief of Army Staff and Commander of Central Army Corps, Kabul
Kabul
Kabul , spelt Caubul in some classic literatures, is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. It is also the capital of the Kabul Province, located in the eastern section of Afghanistan...
while Interpol
Interpol
Interpol, whose full name is the International Criminal Police Organization – INTERPOL, is an organization facilitating international police cooperation...
states that he was the Taliban's Deputy Minister of Defense.
War in Afghanistan
Following the September 11, 2001, attacks, the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
invaded Afghanistan and deposed the Taliban with the help of Afghan forces. Baradar fought against the U.S.-supported Northern Alliance
Northern Alliance
The Afghan Northern Alliance is a military-political umbrella organization created by the Islamic State of Afghanistan in 1996.Northern Alliance may also refer to:*Northern Alliance , a Canadian white supremacist group...
and, according to Newsweek
Newsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
, "hopped on a motorcycle and drove his old friend [Omar] to safety in the mountains" in November 2001 as Taliban defenses were crumbling. One story holds that a U.S.-linked Afghan force actually seized Baradar and other Taliban figures sometime that month, but Pakistani intelligence secured their release. Another story reported by Dutch journalist Bette Dam contends that Baradar actually saved Hamid Karzai
Hamid Karzai
Hamid Karzai, GCMG is the 12th and current President of Afghanistan, taking office on 7 December 2004. He became a dominant political figure after the removal of the Taliban regime in late 2001...
's life when the latter had entered Afghanistan to build an anti-Taliban force.
Whatever the case, a new Afghan government to replace the Taliban was organized in accordance with the December 2001 Bonn Agreement
Bonn Agreement (Afghanistan)
Officially the Agreement on Provisional Arrangements in Afghanistan Pending the Re-Establishment of Permanent Government Institutions, the Bonn Agreement was the initial series of agreements intended to re-create the State of Afghanistan following the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in response to the...
; Hamid Karzai served as interim leader and later President of Afghanistan. Baradar now found himself fighting international forces
International Security Assistance Force
The International Security Assistance Force is a NATO-led security mission in Afghanistan established by the United Nations Security Council on 20 December 2001 by Resolution 1386 as envisaged by the Bonn Agreement...
and the newly formed Afghan government. Many fellow Taliban commanders were killed over the years following the initial invasion, including Baradar's rival Mullah Dadullah
Mullah Dadullah
Maulavi or Mullah Dadullah or Dadullah Akhund was the Taliban's senior military commander until his death by U.S and U.K special ops in 2007. He was an ethnic Pashtun from the Kakar tribe of Kalai-Kakaran village in Uruzgan province of Afghanistan...
, killed in Helmand in 2007. Baradar eventually rose to lead the Quetta Shura
Quetta Shura
The Quetta Shura is a militant organization composed of top leadership of the Afghan Taliban, that is believed to be based since about 2001 in the city of Quetta in the Balochistan province of Pakistan. The Shura was formed after the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan was toppled in late 2001 and the...
and became the de facto leader of the Taliban, directing the insurgency from Pakistan. Temperament-wise he has been described as acting as "an old-fashioned Pashtun tribal head" and a consensus builder. Despite his military activities, Baradar was reportedly behind several attempts to begin peace talks, specifically in 2004 and 2009.
U.S. account
On February 8, 2010, he was captured in a joint raid by the Pakistani Inter-Services IntelligenceInter-Services Intelligence
The Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence , is Pakistan's premier intelligence agency, responsible for providing critical national security intelligence assessment to the Government of Pakistan...
(ISI) and the US Central Intelligence Agency
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
(CIA) in either Baldia Town
Baldia Town
Baldia Town is a town located in the western part of Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan with a population of more than 400,000 at the 1998 census. It is bordered by SITE Town and Orangi to the east and by Kiamari Town to the north and west, with most of the western boundary formed by part of the RCD Highway...
, Karachi
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, or at the Madarassa Khuddamul Quran (45 km NE of Karachi) during a morning raid. The White House took 3 days to confirm the capture.
CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
quoted U.S. officials who said the capture could represent a "turning point" in the struggle with the Taliban. The presence of Taliban in Karachi is not unprecedented; previous reports have indicated that the city hosts a sizable network of Taliban militants, serves as a major source of funds, and may even be the location of Mullah Omar
Mohammed Omar
Mullah Mohammed Omar , often simply called Mullah Omar, is the leader of the Taliban movement that operates in Afghanistan. He was Afghanistan's de facto head of state from 1996 to late 2001, under the official title "Head of the Supreme Council"...
.
Taliban account
One Taliban commander confirmed his capture to the press, though claiming that Baradar had instead been captured in Helmand during Operation MoshtarakOperation Moshtarak
Operation Moshtarak was an ISAF pacification offensive in the area that is described as the "poppy-growing belt" of Helmand Province in southern Afghanistan. The combat operations started on February 13, 2010, and focuses on the Nad Ali District and Lashkar Gah district...
. Another Taliban leader denied that he was in custody.
Pakistani account
Pakistan confirmed on February 17, 2010, that a Taliban suspect captured earlier in February is Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar. A military spokesman said the delay in confirmation had been due to "detailed identification procedures". Pakistan's Foreign Minister, Shah Mehmood QureshiShah Mehmood Qureshi
Makhdoom Shah Mehmood Hussain Qureshi is well-known Politician in Pakistan. He was the Foreign Minister of Pakistan in the coalition government of PPP, Muttahida Quami Movement[MQM], ANP and JUI-F formed after the 2008 general elections. He was a senior leader of Pakistan Peoples Party, where...
, told the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
that Mullah Baradar was being questioned. However, there was no confirmation from Pakistani officials that it was a joint U.S.-Pakistani operation. The day before, Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik
Rehman Malik
27 April 2009 He has been the interior adviser since 27 March 2008.Senator A. Rehman Malik is a Pakistani politician, member of the Senate of Pakistan, and the current Interior Minister of Pakistan under the Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani administration. His Second name is Shetan Malik and he...
had denied the details of a New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
article that broke the story, stating that there was no joint U.S.-Pakistani raid and that "We are a sovereign state and hence will not allow anybody to come and do any operation. And we will not allow that. So this (report) is propaganda". Besides the newspaper Dawn
Dawn (newspaper)
Dawn is Pakistan's oldest and most widely read English-language newspaper. One of the country's two largest English-language dailies, it is the flagship of the Dawn Group of Newspapers, published by Pakistan Herald Publications, which also owns the Herald, a magazine, the evening paper The Star and...
, the story was largely ignored in the Pakistani press when it initially broke.
Reasons for capture
U.S. analysts have said that Baradar's capture is a significant shift in Pakistan's position, since Pakistan had been giving shelter to him and to other Taliban leaders until this capture.But others, including Ahmed Wali Karzai
Ahmed Wali Karzai
Ahmed Wali Karzai was a prominent politician in Afghanistan and the younger paternal half-brother of Afghan President Hamid Karzai and son of Abdul Ahad Karzai. As an elder of the Popalzai Pashtun tribe, he was elected to the Kandahar Provincial Council in 2005 and served as its chairman. Karzai...
, said Pakistan captured Baradar to stop his negotiations with the Karzai government, so that Pakistan would get a seat at the table.
Still others said that the capture was a lucky accident, as Baradar was picked up along with others in a raid based on U.S.-supplied intelligence. Another view contends that Pakistani General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani
Ashfaq Parvez Kayani
General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, NI, HI is a four-star general in the Pakistan Army, and the current Chief of Army Staff of the Pakistan Army. He replaced General Pervez Musharraf as the Chief of Army Staff and the commandant of the army on November 29, 2007...
is using the series of Taliban arrests to help extend his own career beyond his slated November retirement date, the theory being that this would raise his standing among American policymakers and thus press the Pakistani government to retain him.
Aftermath
Pakistan arrested several other Taliban on information from Baradar. Mullah Abdul Salam was included among such detainees. Pakistan indicated on February 24 that it would extradite Baradar to Afghanistan if formally asked to do so. The following day the Afghan government announced that its extradition proposal was accepted by Pakistan. Mullah Abdul Qayyum ZakirAbdullah Gulam Rasoul
Abdul Qayyum "Zakir" , alias Abdullah Ghulam Rasoul, is a citizen of Afghanistan previously held in the United States Guantanamo Bay detainment camps, in Cuba.His Guantanamo Internment Serial Number was 8....
has emerged as the Taliban military leader after Baradar's arrest.
See also
- Mohammed OmarMohammed OmarMullah Mohammed Omar , often simply called Mullah Omar, is the leader of the Taliban movement that operates in Afghanistan. He was Afghanistan's de facto head of state from 1996 to late 2001, under the official title "Head of the Supreme Council"...
- Obaidullah AkhundObaidullah AkhundMullah Obaidullah, the Akhund was the defence minister under the Taliban government in Afghanistan and later became an insurgent commander during the war with the United States and its allies. He was reported captured by Pakistani security forces on March 2, 2007...
- Mullah Dadullah
- CIA
- Special Activities DivisionSpecial Activities DivisionThe Special Activities Division is a division in the United States Central Intelligence Agency's National Clandestine Service responsible for covert operations known as "special activities"...
- Inter-Service Intelligence
External links
- 2009 Statement on official Taliban website
- Interview with the Afghan Islamic PressAfghan Islamic PressAfghan Islamic Press is an Afghan news agency based in Peshawar, Pakistan. It was established 1982, during the Soviet Union's occupation of Afghanistan, by Muhammad Yaqub Sharafat. Sharafat was the nephew of Maulavi Yunis Khales, one of the leaders of the anti-Soviet mujahideen guerrilla movement...
- Interview with NewsweekNewsweekNewsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...