Haqqani network

Haqqani network د حقاني شبکې
Jihadist flag, which was used by the group multiple times since 1970s Flag of the Taliban, which is the current day flag of the group
Founder	Jalaluddin Haqqani (1970s)
Leaders	Jalaluddin Haqqani # (1970s–2018) Sirajuddin Haqqani (2018–present)
Dates of operation	1970s[1]–present
Merged into	Taliban
Allegiance	Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (since 1995)
Active regions	Afghanistan and Pakistan (AfPak)[2][3][4][5]
Ideology	Islamism Islamic fundamentalism
Slogan	"There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger"
Status	Active
Size	4,000–15,000[3][6][7]
Part of	Afghan mujahideen (until 1992)  Taliban (since 1995)[8][2][3][4][5][9]
Allies	1995–present  al-Qaeda  Taliban (1994-1995) Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind Lashkar-e-Jhangvi Tehreek-e-Nafaz-e-Shariat-e-Mohammadi Lashkar-e-Taiba  Pakistan (alleged, denied since 2001)[10]  Iran (alleged)[11][12] See Taliban for additional until 1992 See Afghan mujahideen
Opponents	Republican insurgency Afghanistan Freedom Front National Resistance Front War in Afghanistan ISIS-K Fidai Mahaz NATO United States United Kingdom Canada Spain Germany Tajikistan Italy India Poland Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Soviet invasion and Civil War  Democratic Republic of Afghanistan (1978–1992) Soviet Union (1979–1989) Ittehad-e Islami Shura-e Nazar Mahaz-e Milli Harakat-i Islami Hezb-i Wahdat Junbish-i Milli
Battles and wars	Soviet–Afghan War Afghan Civil War (1989–1992) Afghan Civil War (1992–1996) Afghan Civil War (1996–2001) War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) Taliban insurgency Operation Zarb-e-Azb Islamic State–Taliban conflict[13] 2021 Taliban offensive[14][15]
Preceded by Students of Darul Uloom Haqqania[16]

The Haqqani network is an Afghan Islamist group, built around the family of the same name,^[17] that has used asymmetric warfare in Afghanistan to fight against Soviet forces in the 1980s, and US-led NATO forces and the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan government in the 21st century. It is recognized as a terrorist organization by the United Nations.^[18] It is considered to be a "semi-autonomous"^[19] offshoot of the Taliban.^[20][21][22] It has been most active in eastern Afghanistan and across the border in north-west Pakistan.^[23]

The Haqqani network was founded in 1970^[24] by Jalaluddin Haqqani, a fundamentalist of the Zadran tribe, who fought for Yunus Khalis's mujahideen faction against the Soviets in the 1980s. Jalaluddin Haqqani died in 2018 and his son Sirajuddin Haqqani now leads the group.^[25] The Haqqani network was one of the Reagan administration's most CIA-funded anti-Soviet groups in the 1980s.^[26][3] In the latter stages of the war, Haqqani formed close ties with foreign jihadists, including Osama bin Laden,^[19] becoming one of his closest mentors.^[23] The Haqqani network pledged allegiance to the Taliban in 1995,^[27] and has been an increasingly incorporated wing of the group ever since.^[28] Taliban and Haqqani leaders have denied the existence of the "network", saying it is no different from the Taliban.^[27] In 2012, the United States designated the Haqqani network as a terrorist organization.^[29] In 2015, Pakistan banned the Haqqani network as part of its National Action Plan.^[30]

The elusive^[17] Haqqani network has been blamed for some of the deadliest attacks during the War in Afghanistan (2001-2021), having a reputation of frequently using suicide bombings and being able to carry out complex attacks. They had long been suspected by the United States of ties with the Pakistani military establishment, a claim denied by Pakistan.^[19][23] They have also been suspected of criminal activities such as smuggling and trafficking across the Afghanistan-Pakistan border.^[31] Alongside Al-Qaeda, the Haqqani network maintains close ties with the anti-India Jaish-e-Mohammed, and the Lashkar-e-Taiba.^[31] Following the Fall of Kabul (2021), the group was put in charge of domestic security by the Taliban.^[31] The Wall Street Journal called the group the Taliban's "most radical and violent branch."^[32]