Taliban on Tuesday announced that the head of its decision-making body ‘Rehbari Shura’, Mullah Mohammad Hasan Akhund, will be the interim Prime Minister of its ‘acting government’ in Afghanistan. Akhund, whose name to the top post was recommended by Taliban leader Mullah Hebatullah Akhundzada, served as foreign minister and deputy prime minister during the Taliban’s previous rule in Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001. He was also the Governor of Kandahar, Vice President of the Council of Ministers in 2001.
Hassan hails from the Taliban stronghold of Kandahar province. Considered among the founders of the Taliban, he has been heading the Rehbari Shura for 20 years and is said to be a close associate of Mullah Hebatullah. The United Nations, which has put Hassan on a terror list, describes him as one of the “30 original Taliban.”
An unnamed Taliban leader told Pakistan’s The News International that Hassan was more known for his authority on religious matters, and his “character and devotion.”
American officials considered Hassan as “one of the most ineffective and unreasonable Taliban leaders,” according to intelligence records, due to his adherence to strict interpretation of Islamic laws.
Hassan is alleged to have overseen the destruction of the 6th-century monumental statues of Vairocana Buddha and Gautama Buddha in Afghanistan’s Bamiyan in March 2001.
After receiving education at an Islamic seminary in Pakistan, Hassan is said to have fought against Soviet Union’s occupation of Afghanistan during the 1980s under Hizb-e-Islami’s Khalees faction, before moving back to Pakistan in 1989. Hassan has been referred to as “lightweight” Taliban leader in several media reports.
The Taliban’s announcement of interim government comes days after Pakistan’s spy chief General Lt Gen Hameed rushed to Kabul amid growing international pressure on the Taliban to form an inclusive government.
The Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) chief met Mullah Baradar and Hizb-e-Islami leader Gulbuddin Hekmatyar during his unannounced visit.
