Haqqani Network
Centered in the city of Khost, the followers of popular warlord Jalaluddin Haqqani continue to resist extension of the Karzai government's authority into their border region. In the 1980s Jalaluddin Haqqani fought as a mujahedin leader against Soviet forces, receiving substantial assistance from the CIA by way of Pakistan’s ISI. One of Hekmatyar’s most effective former commanders, Jalaluddin Haqqani, later joined the Taliban and became its minister for tribal affairs. Though he had joined the Taliban, he joined the government as a Minister but retained a separate power base in his home Zadran district and tribe, east of Kabul.
By 2008 anti-government forces were multifaceted, and consisted not only of Taliban loyalists but also of various jihadists - Gulbeddin Hekmatyar's faction of Hizb-i-Islami in the east and Jalaluddin Haqqani's group in North Waziristan (among others). These groups have distinct goals, and their collaboration is less alliance than marriage of convenience. It is at times difficult at a distance to attribute and disaggregate the actions of each, and "Taliban" functions as a flawed shorthand. The Haqqani network is closely associated with the Taliban and one of its strongest factions. Reportedly, the network is also particularly closely linked to al Qaeda.
Jalaluddin Haqqani's son Sirajudin has reportedly ascended to a key leadership role, and has reportedly called for changes in the leadership of the Quetta shura. US officials in Afghanistan note that Sirajudin, like his father, has focused on his home Zadran district but has also expanded his activities into the areas south of Kabul. Jalaluddin Haqqaniand his son Sirajuddin are reputedly the commanders of the mujahideen forces that fought the Pakistani government to a draw in Waziristan in 2008.
Popular with Middle Eastern private backers, Haqqani in the past has been eagerly courted by the Karzai government with offers of government positions. The important Taliban “Peshawar Shura” is headquartered in Pakistan’s North West Frontier province. The militias headed by Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and Jalaluddin Haqqani are fighting US forces alongside the Taliban. Hekmatyar operates in the tribal areas of Dir and Bajur, while Jalaluddin Haqqani is based in Waziristan. Sirajuddin Haqqani operates in Ghazni, Kunar, Paktia, Paktika and Khost area.
In July 2008 a CIA assessment specifically pointed to links between members of the spy service, the Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence, or ISI, and the militant network led by Maulavi Jalaluddin Haqqani, which American officials believed maintains close ties to senior figures of Al Qaeda in Pakistan’s tribal areas.
