Dadullah

For other uses, see Mullah Dadullah Front and Dadullah (Pakistani Taliban).
Dadullah Akhund
دادالله آخوند
BornAround 1967[1]
Uruzgan Province, Afghanistan[1]
DiedMay 11, 2007 (aged 40)
Asadullah Khan Akah Drop, Garmsir, Helmand, Afghanistan[2]
Allegiance Taliban
Years of service1994–2007
RankCommander
Battles / warsSoviet–Afghan War
Afghan civil war
War in Afghanistan

Dadullah (1966 – May 11, 2007) was the Taliban's most senior militant commander in Afghanistan until his death in 2007.[3] He was also known as Maulavi or Mullah Dadullah Akhund (Pashto: ملا دادالله آخوند). He also earned the nickname of Lang, meaning "lame" (as in Timur Lang), because of a leg he lost during fighting.[4]

An ethnic Pashtun from the Kakar tribe of Kandahar Province, he was known as "The Butcher", even among fellow Taliban members, for his brutality and outbursts of violence, notably in cutting men's heads off, as per some, even being stripped of his command at least twice by Mullah Omar due to his extreme behavior.[5]

According to the United Nations' list of entities belonging to or associated with the Al-Qaeda organization, he had been the Taliban's Minister of Construction.[6] He was killed by British and German special forces.

  1. ^ a b Frank Shanty (17 August 2012). Counterterrorism: From the Cold War to the War on Terror. ABC-CLIO. p. 275. ISBN 9781598845457.
  2. ^ Qazizai, Fazelminallah; Sands, Chris (August 2022). "Faith and Vengeance: the Islamic State's War in Afghanistan". newlinesmag.com. New Lines Magazine. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference BBC-may13 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Malkasian, Carter (2021). The American War in Afghanistan: A History. Oxford University Press. pp. 116–117.
  5. ^ Coghlan, Tom (2012). "The Taliban in Helmand: An Oral History". In Giustozzi, Antonio (ed.). Decoding the New Taliban: Insights from the Afghan Field. Hurst Publishers. p. 138.
  6. ^ John R. Bolton (2003). "Denied Persons Pursuant to UN Security Council Resolution". United States Federal Registry. Retrieved November 3, 2010.