RASC News Agency: Mullah Mohammad Ali Hanafi, widely known as Mullah Shirin Akhund, is a senior Taliban figure accused of masterminding targeted assassinations, including the killing of General Abdul Raziq. He has played a pivotal role in eliminating opponents of the Taliban and high-profile public figures. According to sources, Mullah Shirin was a close confidant of Mullah Omar, the founder of the Taliban. During the group’s first regime (1996–2001), he was entrusted with the personal security of Mullah Omar and his family. Originally from Zhari district in Kandahar, he fled to Pakistan following the collapse of the Taliban’s first government in 2001. There, he became a key member of the Taliban’s leadership council in Peshawar, where he was actively involved in recruiting and mobilizing new fighters.
Mullah Shirin has been implicated in a series of targeted killings and severe acts of torture. During his tenure as an intelligence officer in the Taliban’s Ministry of Defense, he reportedly ordered the brutal persecution of numerous individuals. After the Taliban’s return to power in 2021, he was initially appointed as the governor of Kabul, later assuming the role of deputy intelligence chief at the Ministry of Defense, before ultimately being placed in charge of Kandahar province. Sources reveal that Mullah Shirin also leads the Taliban’s commission for border negotiations with Pakistan, playing a critical role in diplomatic dealings between the two sides. However, he is widely regarded as one of the primary obstacles to successful negotiations.
Reports indicate that Shirin maintains deep ties with senior leaders of Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). Some TTP operatives have allegedly been relocated to Kandahar under his direct patronage. Furthermore, he is believed to be a central figure in Afghanistan’s drug trade, overseeing the production, trafficking, and sale of narcotics, particularly along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. According to intelligence sources, Mullah Shirin was the chief architect behind the assassination of General Abdul Raziq Achakzai, the former police chief of Kandahar and one of Afghanistan’s most formidable security figures. He has also been implicated in numerous other high-profile assassinations.
Today, Mullah Shirin remains one of the most powerful and influential figures within the Taliban leadership.
