Afghan Taliban refugee chief Khalil Rahman Haqqani was killed in an explosion in the capital Kabul, his nephew Anas Haqqani said on Wednesday.
Khalil Haqqani is a minister in the Taliban’s interim government after the withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan in 2021. He is a senior leader of the Haqqani network, which is blamed for major attacks in the 20-year war, according to the US State Department.
Khalil was the brother of Jalaluddin Haqq, the founder of the dreaded Haqqani network. The deceased minister was the uncle of Afghanistan’s current interior minister, Sirajuddin Haqq.
The Haqqani is said to be fighting for influence among the Taliban authorities. According to senior Taliban leaders based in Kandahar, they are seen as a pragmatic group against those who advocate a radical interpretation of Islamic law, according to media reports.
Since several senior Taliban leaders returned to power, provincial governors, commanders and clerics have been killed in attacks, mostly by Daesh.
Violence in Afghanistan has declined since the Taliban took control of the country in 2021, ending a war against foreign forces led by the United States and NATO.
“We lost a very brave Mujahideen,” Anas Haqqani told Reuters, using the term “Taliban” to refer to the holy fighters. We will never forget him and his sacrifice.”
It is not known who was behind the explosion.
The Taliban took control of Afghanistan in 2021 when foreign forces withdrew, promising to restore security, but attacks on cities continued.
In 2022, four people were killed in an explosion near the Ministry of Interior led by Haqqani leader Sirajuddin Haqq. In 2023, Daesh said it killed at least five people outside the Taliban-led Foreign Ministry.
The US Treasury Secretary designated Khalil Haqq as a “Specially Designated Global Terrorist” in 2011, and the State Department offered a $5 million reward for information leading to his capture.
