Mullah Abdur Razzaq Akhundzada (1958 – October 2003) was a Pashtun politician who served as the Interior Minister of Afghanistan in 2001.[1] He served as the governor of Herat in 1997[2] and is believed to be a member of the Taliban leadership. He is rumoured to belong to the Achakzai tribe, from a family of Jalaludin village, Spin Boldak District, Kandahar Province; it is also claimed that he is in fact not an Afghan, but is a Pakistani national.[3]
Razzaq traveled to Pakistan in mid-May 2000 to discuss the extradition of criminals, terrorism, drug trafficking and the Afghanistan–Pakistan Transit Trade Agreement.[4] Pakistan demanded the closure of 18 Afghan training camps, where Pakistani militants were believed to be receiving training.
Razzaq was captured in an uprising in Mazar-i-Sharif but later escaped.[2]
The British paper The Scotsman reported that Razzaq was a founding member of the Taliban; that he headed the Taliban's customs department; and was later interior minister. The article further alleged that Razzaq was the number two in a then new Taliban military command structure.[5]
References
- ↑ Scott Baldauf, Owais Tohid (May 8, 2003). "Taliban appears to be regrouped and well-funded: A new hierarchy of leaders has emerged across parts of Afghanistan". The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved 2007-02-27.
- 1 2 Adamec, Ludwig W. (2012). Historical dictionary of Afghanistan (4th ed.). Lanham, Md.: The Scarecrow Press. p. 16. ISBN 978-0-8108-7815-0.
- ↑ "Akhond, Abdul Razaq Mullah". Afghan Biographies.
- ↑ "Background paper on Refugees and Asylum Seekers from Afghanistan" (PDF). United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. April 2001. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 21, 2006. Retrieved February 27, 2007.
- ↑ Ian Mather (May 11, 2003). "Russia funding resurgent Taliban". The Scotsman. Archived from the original on 11 February 2007. Retrieved 2007-02-27.