$10m bounty sits lightly on head of regime’s power broker
‘Haqqani was the best prepared for the early collapse of Kabul and has been rewarded’
‘The Taliban will not be able to make any decision unless he is on board with it’
Awanted international terrorist with a $10million (£7.3million) reward on his head has emerged as one of the main winners of Taliban jockeying for power in the early weeks of their government, regime insiders have said.
Sirajuddin Haqqani has outmanoeuvred rivals to carefully consolidate a growing power base within the Taliban as the movement has switched from insurgency to fledgling government.
His rise poses a significant dilemma for international governments wanting to engage in order to stave off a humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan and who must now deal with a militant who has been linked with al-qaeda and accused of overseeing some of the Afghan conflict’s worst atrocities.
The leader of the Haqqani Network faction within the Taliban has held significant influence for many years, but this has solidified in recent weeks as he has secured appointments for his allies. Haqqani himself has taken the interior ministry post, in charge of internal security and intelligence. He is also rumoured to have been given the power to appoint highly prized governors positions in parts of the country. Family members and allies have taken the roles of refugees minister and deputy intelligence chief among other positions. Another Haqqani ally has even taken charge of the national cricket board.
“Since Kabul fell, Haqqani has risen a great deal,” said a senior Taliban figure.
“Siraj is a smart man when it comes to dealing with people and the
Taliban’s internal bureaucracy. He has a reward for $10 million on his head and that has given him prestige within the movement.
“Haqqani was the best prepared for the situation and the likely scenarios in an early collapse of Kabul and how to deal with that. He’s been rewarded with a big share in the government.”
Stalwarts from the movement’s ancestral home in Kandahar still dominate the ranks of the Taliban leadership, said Ibraheem Bahiss, a consultant at Crisis Group, but Haqqani had emerged as one of the biggest winners of recent weeks.
“He’s consolidated his power, the Taliban will not be able to make any decision unless he is on board with it,” he said.
Sirajuddin’s position as son of the legendary anti-soviet Mujahideen commander Jalaluddin Haqqani meant
he grew up steeped in jihad, and is highly respected within the movement.
The senior Haqqani enjoyed CIA backing to fight the Russians in the 1980s, but in the 1990s, joined the Taliban government, taking a position as minister of tribal and border affairs. He stuck with the Taliban when they were ousted by America in 2001, and rebuilt his network of fighters from a safe haven in Pakistan.
Sirajuddin took on day-to-day control as the old lion aged and is thought to have led operations for more than a decade before Jalaluddin was declared dead in 2018.
The network became notorious for both its close ties to Pakistan and al-qaeda, and its ruthless violence during the past 20 years. With Sirajuddin at the helm, the organisation became known for its high-profile “spectaculars” at the height of the international presence. These included a June 2011 attack on Kabul’s Intercontinental Hotel that killed 11 civilians, a Sept 2011 truck bombing in Wardak province that wounded 77 US soldiers and a 19-hour attack on the American Embassy and Nato headquarters which killed 16 Afghans, including at least six children. It was also blamed for later bombings that killed scores inside Kabul.
A recent United Nations intelligence assessment stated that the Haqqanis remained “a hub for outreach and co-operation with regional foreign terrorist groups and is the primary liaison between the Taliban and al-qaeda”. The June 2021 analysis also declared that Sirajuddin was “assessed to be a member of the wider al-qaeda leadership, but not of the al-qaeda core leadership”.
Sirajuddin’s years on the run mean almost no pictures of him exist and when he recently presided over his first interior ministry meeting he was only photographed from behind. Indeed, very few senior Taliban figures have been photographed, with the government operating largely in the shadows.
His position as interior minister, and the appointment of his uncle, Khalilur-rehman Haqqani, as refugees minister, mean the Haqqani network presides over some of the country’s most pressing crises. His domestic security responsibility means Sirajuddin must tackle attacks from the local branch of Islamic State group.
The interior, intelligence and refugees portfolios overseen by the Haqqanis are likely to be key points of engagement for Western countries wanting to stop a surge of refugees and keep an eye on any jihadists in Afghanistan. That represents a headache for countries like the UK and US, said Mr Bahiss.
“I think it just makes it that bit more difficult to have to deal with such a government where the Haqqanis are at the forefront of the portfolios that affect them.
“It adds one more element to the difficulties Western governments would be facing when having to deal with a government that’s in many ways dominated by a group that’s most recognised as a foreign terrorist organisation.”
As interior minister, Haqqani also oversees Afghanistan’s passport office, which has raised concerns that he may be able to issue passports to militants and terrorists hiding in the country.
The national passport office reopened this week with the capacity to issue 5,000 travel documents a day.
Much of the Taliban rank and file consider al-qaeda militants to be their comrades, and have been reluctant to bow to American demands to turn on the international jihadists.
Mr Bahiss said: “The Taliban take the position that the Doha agreement gave them permission to treat foreign militants as refugees as long as they do not continue to be involved in planning attacks.
“It’s not unimaginable that you could see the Taliban’s government issuing passports to many of these individuals associated with terrorist groups.”