KABUL – The Taliban announced Tuesday the death of Jalaluddin Haqqani, aformer CIA asset whose eponymous militant group is now considered one ofthe most dangerous factions fighting Afghan and US-led NATO forces inAfghanistan.
The Haqqani network was founded by Jalaluddin, an Afghan mujahideencommander fighting the Soviet occupation in the 1980s with the help of theUnited States and Pakistan.
Now a Taliban affiliate, it is blamed for some of the most shocking andbrutal attacks across Afghanistan since the US invasion of 2001. Designateda terror group by Washington, targeting it is one of the top US prioritiesin the region.
Long suspected of links to Pakistan’s shadowy military establishment, thenetwork was described by US Admiral Mike Mullen in 2011 as a “veritablearm” of Pakistani intelligence.
*Who are they? *
Jalaluddin gained notoriety for his organisation and bravery during theAfghan conflict of the 1980s, garnering attention from the CIA and apersonal visit from US congressman Charlie Wilson.
A fluent Arabic speaker, Jalaluddin also fostered close ties with Arabjihadists, including Osama bin Laden, who flocked to the region during thewar. Later, Jalaluddin became a minister in the Taliban regime.
He is believed to have been ill for several years. The network has been ledby his son Sirajuddin, who doubles as the Afghan Taliban’s deputy leader,for some time now.
The Haqqanis are known for their heavy use of suicide bombers. Analystshave long suspected them of being behind some high-profile attacks in Kabulthat have been claimed by the Islamic State group in recent years.
Among many spectacular assaults, they were accused of killing around 150people in the heart of Kabul with a truck bomb in May 2017 — thoughSirajuddin later denied the accusation in a rare audio message.
The network has also been accused of assassinating top Afghan officials andholding kidnapped Westerners for ransom.
That includes Canadian Joshua Boyle, his American wife Caitlan Coleman, andtheir three children, who were released last year. They also held USsoldier Bowe Bergdahl, who was released in 2014 in exchange for five AfghanGuantanamo Bay detainees.
*Where are they now? *
Following the US invasion of Afghanistan, Taliban fighters flooded acrossthe border into Pakistan, where they regrouped before launching aninsurgency against the Americans.
That included the Haqqanis, who coordinated attacks on NATO from across theborder in their stronghold of Miranshah, the biggest town in NorthWaziristan, one of Pakistan’s loosely governed tribal areas along theborder with Afghanistan.
The US launched repeated drone attacks against the group, while Pakistan’smilitary conducted successive clearing operations, though sceptical Afghanofficials have noted they always seemed to miss the Haqqanis.
Islamabad intensified military operations in North Waziristan in 2014,however, and now insists that there are no militant safe havens left onPakistani soil.
Some militant sources say the pressure forced many of the Haqqanisunderground or over the border into their Afghan strongholds, claims thatAFP could not confirm.
Unverified reports have placed Jalaluddin in Pakistan in recent years.There is no confirmation yet of where he was when he died.
*Why are they linked to Pakistan?*
Pakistan sees its arch-nemesis to the east, India, as an existentialthreat, and has long sought influence over Kabul as a bulwark against NewDelhi.
The Haqqanis have frequently been accused of targeting Indian installationsin Afghanistan, spurring speculation they were overseen by Pakistaniintelligence.
Analysts say Pakistan appears to view the Haqqanis and more broadly theAfghan Taliban as an asset holding India at bay in Afghanistan.
Politicians and retired military officials in Islamabad acknowledgeprivately that having open channels with the Haqqanis is vital, with manyinsisting that maintaining contact is not the same as offering support.