"Born around 1973, black hair, black or brown eyes, height approximately 175 cm, weight 75 kg, medium build, wrinkled face, speaks Arabic, and nationality unknown." These are the details of Sirajuddin Haqqani, known as "Khalifa Sahib Haqqani," the leader of the notorious Haqqani Network, listed on the FBI’s website. The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation has offered a reward of up to $10 million for information leading to the capture of Sirajuddin Haqqani under the "Rewards for Justice" program.
Sirajuddin Haqqani has been labeled by the U.S. FBI as a global terrorist, leading the Haqqani Network, and has close ties with Al-Qaeda. According to the FBI, Haqqani was involved in two terrorist attacks in 2008: one on a hotel in Kabul that killed six people, including an American citizen, and an assassination attempt on Hamid Karzai, the former president of Afghanistan.
Sirajuddin Haqqani is the eldest son of Jalaluddin Haqqani, the founder of the Haqqani Network and a prominent figure in the jihad against the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in the 1980s. Jalaluddin Haqqani, often referred to as the "mentor of terrorists" and "the blue-eyed child of the CIA," fled to Miranshah, Pakistan after the fall of the first Taliban regime, where he established new frameworks under the name of the Haqqani Network. He had significant influence in eastern Afghanistan and among the Pashtun tribes on both sides of the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, recruiting young men and turning the Haqqani Network into one of the Taliban’s most effective operational branches.
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Jalaluddin Haqqani was also considered second in command in the Taliban leadership, after Mullah Omar. During the Soviet-Afghan war, he was known for his creativity in killing techniques, new methods of laying mines, and guerrilla warfare tactics. He had close relationships with regional intelligence services, including Pakistan’s ISI, the CIA, and the intelligence agencies of several Middle Eastern countries. Jalaluddin Haqqani pocketed millions of dollars from funds flowing into Afghanistan aimed at toppling the communist government.
Haqqani was respected by all intelligence organizations supporting the war against Afghanistan’s socialist government due to his ruthlessness toward enemies and the operational strength of his forces.
Jalaluddin Haqqani hailed from the Ghilzai tribe and was married twice. His first wife was from the Ghilzai tribe, and his second wife was an Arab woman from Yemen who has been living in the UAE for years. Jalaluddin Haqqani died in Pakistan in 2014 due to illness, and his burial site remains undisclosed.
Internal Structure of the Haqqani Network
In Jalaluddin Haqqani's final years, his sons, each battle-hardened from Afghanistan’s wars, took over the network's operations. Sirajuddin Haqqani, the eldest son, assumed leadership, and the other sons and brothers took on various roles within the network.
A senior officer of Afghanistan’s former National Directorate of Security (NDS), who had pursued the Haqqani Network for years and participated in operations against it in Afghanistan and Pakistan, shared detailed information about the structure of the network and its role in the 20-year war with *Independent Persian*.
This intelligence officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, divided the Haqqani Network into three main branches:
The first is the financial intermediaries, who, over the past 20 years, have raised funds for the network from various charitable organizations, merchants, and intelligence agencies in the region. This group has been led in recent years by Anas Haqqani, Jalaluddin Haqqani’s youngest son, born to his Yemeni wife. Anas traveled frequently between the Middle East and freely moved between the UAE, Qatar, and Pakistan. In 2014, he was arrested in the region and transferred to Kabul, where he was held in Bagram prison until he was exchanged in November 2019 for two American university professors held by the Haqqani Network. According to the former NDS officer, Anas Haqqani never participated in military battles and was solely involved in fundraising.
The second branch is comprised of senior commanders of the group, who raised funds through criminal activities. According to the officer, this group was led by Khalil-ur-Rahman Haqqani and Ibrahim Haqqani, Jalaluddin Haqqani’s brothers. Khalil currently serves as the Minister for Refugees in the Taliban government, while Ibrahim has not been officially appointed to any role and has not appeared publicly. Ibrahim Haqqani has seized former Afghan President Ashraf Ghani’s personal residence in Kabul's Darulaman area and lives there, though he holds no official position within the Taliban government.
The third branch of the Haqqani Network was responsible for military and operational activities, organizing suicide bombings, assassinations, and attacks on former Afghan government military bases and foreign forces. This operational wing was initially led by Badruddin Haqqani, Abdulaziz Haqqani, and Nasiruddin Haqqani, sons of Jalaluddin. Badruddin was killed in 2012, and Nasiruddin in 2013 in Pakistan's North Waziristan. After their deaths, others took over military leadership under the direct supervision of Sirajuddin Haqqani.
Has the U.S. Forgotten the "Global Terrorist"?
Despite being labeled a global terrorist and wanted by the FBI, Sirajuddin Haqqani, the leader of the Haqqani Network, has held meetings with foreign diplomats and international aid organizations in recent days. Although no clear video or photograph of him has been released, it seems unlikely that his face remains unknown to intelligence agencies like the CIA and FBI. Still, as his meetings increase, questions arise as to whether the U.S. has forgotten this global terrorist responsible for the deaths of American citizens.
A former Afghan intelligence officer, who had tracked Sirajuddin Haqqani alongside NATO intelligence officers, said: "Sirajuddin Haqqani is still considered a global terrorist and a dangerous enemy by the U.S. He is responsible for killing U.S. citizens, and American intelligence agencies will never forget him. However, due to the complex situation in Afghanistan, including the humanitarian crisis and the presence of Western citizens in the country, the U.S. has decided not to target him for now."
Haqqani's network is now the backbone of Taliban power in Afghanistan, controlling security structures and revenue streams. Its deep ties to Al-Qaeda and regional terrorist organizations make it a potential threat to the security of Afghanistan and neighboring countries.
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