Sirajuddin Haqqani, along with his father Jalaluddin Haqqani, heads the Haqqani Network, the third-largest militant organization fighting against the U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan. The Haqqani Network is officially part of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, the Taliban's shadow government in the country. (The second largest group of militants is Hizb-e-Islami of Afghanistan led by Gulbuddin Hekmatyar.)
Sirajuddin Haqqani, 30, is a member of the Majlis-e-Shura (executive council) of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. The Taliban has assigned him responsibility for southeastern Afghanistan, the region comprising Paktika, Khost, and Paktia provinces. Sirajuddin Haqqani is part of the core group of Taliban commanders which masterminded the suicide bombings at the CIA forward operating base in Khost province on December 31, 2009.
In a recent interview, published in the June 2010 issue of the Urdu-language jihadist monthly magazine Afghan Nawa-i-Waqt, Sirajuddin Haqqani noted that following the Khost bombing there has been a 90 percent decline in U.S. and NATO troops' attacks on the Taliban. He also lauded the role played by the internet-based jihadist networks.
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