Naqib

Mullah Naqib, sometimes called Naqibullah (c.1950 - October 11, 2007), was a mujahideen commander and politician from the Kandahar area of southern Afganistan. He was the leader of the Alikozai Pashtun tribe.

Mujahideen commander

Mullah Naqib gained respect as a military leader during the Soviet war in Afghanistan, when he fought against Soviet and Afghan communist forces. [cite web |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/1697171.stm |title=Profile: Mullah Naqibullah |accessdate=2008-06-27 |date=7 December, 2001 |work= |publisher=BBC] In 1984, he became affiliated with the Jamiat-e Islami party of Burhanuddin Rabbani. The Jamiat was often perceived as having a constituency limited to the Tajik minority, so Rabbani was especially careful to cultivate his relations with the few Pashtun commanders willing to join him, such as Mullah Naqib. [cite book |last=Urban |first=Mark |authorlink= Mark Urban |title=War in Afghanistan |year=1990 |publisher=Palgrave MacMillan |location=London |isbn=0-333-51477-7|pages=p.125 ]

Naqib's forces built a fortified base in the Arghandab district, that the government troops repeatedly, and unsuccessfuly tried to destroy. In June 1987, a large force of government troops, spearheaded by tanks and supported by Soviet artillery attacked into Arghandab. After a week of hard fighting in the "green zone", the dense agricultural area along the Arghandab valley, the force approached the main mujahideen at Chaharqulba. Dismayed by their inability to stop the advancing armour, some mujahideen commanders suggested to Naqib that they should withdraw. A commander described the interview:

Finally, we Mujahideen commanders went to Naqib and said that we are outnumbered and should leave the base. Naqib said that this is their last battle and will decide the contest between them and us. [...] We replied that the RPGs were not working against the sandbagged tanks. Naqib took an RPG and strode out to the forward positions to kill a tank. We commanders stopped him and promised to fight to the end. [cite book |last=Grau |first=Lester |coauthors=Jalali, Ali Ahmad |title=Afghan guerilla warfare: in the words of the mujahideen fighters |year=1995 |publisher=MBI |location= |isbn=0-7603-1322-9|pages=p.312 ]

Eventually, the government troops withdrew, having suffered heavy causalties. [Urban, p.125]

Mullah Naqib is also said to have personally shot down three Mi-24 gunships using Stinger missiles supplied by the CIA. His military record gave him a heroic status among the local population. [cite book |last=Pigott |first=Peter |title=Canada in Afghanistan: The War So Far |year=2007 |publisher=Dundurn Press Ltd |isbn=1 5500 2674 7 |pages=p. 112]

Later career

After the collapse of the communist regime in 1992, the mujahideen took control of Kandahar. Gul Agha Sherzai was nominally the governor but he lacked authority, as each group sought to carve itself a territory to control. Mullah Naqib was the most powerful most commander in the city, and many of his subordinates turned to illegal taxation and theft, in order to earn an income.cite web |url=http://www.afgha.net/?q=node/4572 |title=Death of a Warrior: Mullah Naqib laid to rest in Kandahar |accessdate=2008-06-30 |date=16/10/2007 |publisher=Afgha.com] The situation remained calm until 1993, when sporadic clashes erupted between different factions. [cite book |last=Maley |first= William |title=The Afghanistan wars |year=2002 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |isbn=0-333-80291-7|pages=p. 208 ]

The lawlessness in Kandahar paved the way for the rise of the Taliban movement. On November 3, 1994, Mullah Naqib and his 2,500 men did not resist the advance of the Taliban, allowing them to capture the city, and, in exchange, he was permitted to retire safely into his bastion in Arghandab. [cite book |last=Rashid |first= Ahmed |authorlink=Ahmed Rashid |title=Taliban |year=2000 |publisher=Yale University Press |isbn=0-300-08902-3|pages=pp. 28-29 ] This led to widespread suspicions that he had been bribed, but there is also evidence that he was acting under orders from Rabbani. [Maley, p.208]

Role in post-Taliban Afghanistan

Mullah Naqib reemerged as the Taliban regime began to dissolve following the 2001 US invasion of Afghanistan. He managed to broker a deal between Hamid Karzai, the Americans favorite, and Taliban leader Mullah Omar, allowing the surrender of 3,000 militants in Kandahar. However, his rivalry with Gul Agha Sherzai also resurfaced, and their forces clashed, as Sherzai's men seized several key positions, with the support of US airstrikes. Karzai later defused the situation, by brokering a power shareout agreement, whereby Sherzai was made governor, and the post of vice-governor was attributed to Naqib, who gave it to his brother-in-law. [cite news |first=Shahzada |last=Zulfiqar |title=The Fall and After |url=http://www.newsline.com.pk/NewsFeb2002/newsbeat2.htm |publisher=Newsline |date=February 2002 |accessdate=2008-07-17 ]

After once again retiring to his tribal area in Arghandab, Mullah Naqib became a powerful asset for the government in its struggle against the Taliban. His tribal militia prevented them from gaining influence in the Arghandab district, that is considered critical to the defense of Kandahar. He thus became a prime objective for Taliban assassins, who targeted him with a bombing attack in early March 2007, leaving him badly injured. After receiving treatment for several months in India, Naqib returned to Afghanistan, to witness a deteriorating security situation. He warned of an impending Taliban attack, and advised against the planned withdrawal of Canadian ISAF troops form Kandahar province, scheduled for 2009.cite news |first=Omar |last=El Akkad |coauthors=Smith, Graeme |title=Mullah's death leaves Kandahar exposed |url=http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20071012.naguib13/BNStory/International/home |publisher=The Globe and Mail |date=October 13, 2007 |accessdate=2008-07-19 ]

Naqib died of a heart attack on October 11, 2007. Thousand of people, including President Hamid Karzai, attended his funeral. His death was severe blow to U.S-led coalition and to the Afghan government, that left the Arghandab district open to attack by the Taliban.

References

External links

*cite web |url=http://www.cbc.ca/national/blog/video/militaryafghanistan/mullah_naqib_losing_an_ally.html |title=Mullah Naqib - Losing an Ally |accessdate=2008-07-03 |last= |first= |coauthors= |date=2007-10-15 |publisher=CBC.ca
*cite web |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/16/AR2007111601204_pf.html |title=A Mullah Dies, and War Comes Knocking |accessdate=2008-07-20 |last=Chayes |first=Sarah |date=2007-11-18 |publisher=The Washington Post
*cite web |url=http://www.afghanistannewscenter.com/news/2006/december/dec122006.html |title=How a Canadian's death slipped through Afghan's courts |accessdate=2008-07-20 |last=Smith |first=Graeme |date=2006-12-11 |publisher=The Globe and Mail