Hafiz Gul Bahadur Group

It has been suggested that this article be merged into Hafiz Gul Bahadur. (Discuss) Proposed since September 2024.

Hafiz Gul Bahadur Group
حافظ گل بہادر گروپ
Jihadist flag used by Hafiz Gul Bahadur group multiple times
Leaders	Hafiz Gul Bahadur
Dates of operation	2007 - present
Allegiance	Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan
Motives	Overthrow the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and establish a Taliban government (2007-2021) Overthrow the Pakistani government and establish a Pakistani Taliban government
Headquarters	Afghanistan (since 2021)
Active regions	Pakistan Afghanistan
Ideology	Islamic fundamentalism Takfirism
Notable attacks	Bannu Cantonment attack
Size	1000-1500
Allies	Pakistani Taliban Taliban Al-Qaeda Lashkar-e-Islam Haqqani Network
Opponents	China  Pakistan (since 2021)  United Kingdom  United States Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (until 2021) Afghanistan Freedom Front National Resistance Front
Battles and wars	War in Afghanistan War in North-West Pakistan Global War on Terrorism
Designated as a terrorist group by	United Nations[1]  Pakistan[2]

Hafiz Gul Bahadur group (Urdu: حافظ گل بہادر گروپ) or HGB is a faction of the Pakistani Taliban (TTP) based in North Waziristan and surrounding districts of the former FATA region in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The group is led by tribal leader Hafiz Gul Bahadur, who is affiliated with the Afghan Taliban and the Haqqani Network. Though the group had previously directed most of its attacks against the Afghan government and NATO forces during the war in Afghanistan, it has since targeted the Pakistani government after the fall of Kabul in 2021. Militants affiliated with HGB have been linked to several high-profile attacks on Pakistani security forces in the ongoing insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

HGB traces its roots from the tribal followers of Hafiz Gul Bahadur. Bahadur organized resistance against a Pakistani operation in the northwest in 2005, later signing a peace deal with the government in 2006 and becoming the leader of the local Taliban in North Waziristan. Bahadur was named first deputy of the Pakistani Taliban upon its formation in December 2007, but infighting plagued the group due to Bahadur's insistence on attacking targets in Afghanistan and not the Pakistani government. HGB's acceptance of the Pakistani government had led them to be dubbed the 'good Taliban' by media and government sources. HGB's peace agreement with the Pakistan ended in 2014 with the launch of an offensive against all militants in the area, including HGB. After a Taliban offensive in 2021 defeated the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, HGB has shifted its activities against Pakistan and has collaborated further with the TTP. The group has been suspected of using Afghanistan as a launching ground for its operations against Pakistan.