Ahmad Massoud
احمد مسعود
Massoud in 2019
Leader of the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan
Assumed office
17 August 2021
Personal details
Born (1989-07-10) 10 July 1989 (age 34)
Warsaj District, Takhar Province Afghanistan
Parents
Alma materKing's College London
City, University of London
Military service
AllegianceIslamic Republic of Afghanistan
Years of service2019–present
RankSupreme Leader
CommandsNational Resistance Front of Afghanistan
Battles/warsRepublican insurgency in Afghanistan

Ahmad Massoud (Pashto/Dari: احمد مسعود, IPA: [ʔæhmæd mæsʔuːd]; born July 10, 1989) is an Afghan politician who is the founder and Leader of the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan. He is the eldest son of anti-Soviet military leader Ahmad Shah Massoud. He was appointed as the CEO of Massoud Foundation in November 2016.[1] On 5 September 2019, he was declared his father's successor at his mausoleum in the Panjshir Valley.[2] As a result, he has sometimes been referred to as "The Young Lion of Panjshir". After the Taliban seized control of Panjshir Valley on 6 September 2021, Massoud fled to Tajikistan along with former Vice President Amrullah Saleh.[3]

Early life and education

Ahmad Massoud was born in 1989.[4] He is the only son and the oldest of Ahmad Shah Massoud's six children.[5]

After attending high school in Iran, Massoud trained at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.[6] In 2012, he commenced an undergraduate degree in war studies at King's College London, where he obtained his bachelor's degree in 2015. He obtained his master's degree in international politics from City, University of London in 2016.[7][8][9] His undergraduate and postgraduate dissertation topics were the Taliban.[10]

Career

Massoud returned to Afghanistan and was appointed CEO of the Massoud Foundation in 2016.[5][11]

Since March 2019, Massoud has officially entered politics, a widely anticipated move for one referred to in Panjshir as the "predestined."[12][13][14][15][16] He has endorsed his father's idea of a Swiss model for internal power relations in Afghanistan, saying that the decentralization of government and the de-concentration of power from Kabul would give a more efficient allocation of resources and authority to provinces in the country, thereby bringing prosperity and stability to the country as a whole.[17][18][19]

Massoud objected to the direction of the Afghan peace process in 2019, which he believed did not represent the interests of all Afghans. In September of that year, he announced the creation of a new coalition of mujahideen leaders modeled on the Northern Alliance that resisted the Taliban in the 1990s.[20] The coalition, known as the Second Resistance or National Resistance Front of Afghanistan, became one of several independent military forces built up ahead of the United States military withdrawal.[21][22] After most of the country surrendered to the Taliban during its 2021 offensive, Massoud and First Vice President Amrullah Saleh met in Panjshir and declared their rejection of Taliban rule. He appealed in the American press for military and logistical support for his forces. Among other reasons, he listed the need to protect women's rights, prevent public executions, and avoid the return of a safe haven in Afghanistan for international terrorists.[23]

On 22 August 2021, he warned of a potential civil war if there is not a power-sharing agreement and said that war was "unavoidable" under those circumstances, saying "We defeated the Soviet Union, we can defeat the Taliban".[24] He has founded the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan (NRF) which has thousands of fighters. Massoud has asked the U.S., France and others in Europe and the Arab world to support the NRF.[25] He has also stated his desire to negotiate with the Taliban, but that if talks fail he is ready for a military confrontation.[26]

On 6 September 2021, with the Taliban taking control of the Panjshir Valley, Massoud moved to an unknown location and said the resistance will continue.[27][28] On 9 September, Massoud's spokesman Ali Maisam Nazary stated that both Massoud and acting Islamic Republic of Afghanistan President Amrullah Saleh were "safe" and still in Afghanistan.[29] Nazary also disputed reports that the Taliban had full control of the Province, stating that 60% was still under National Resistance Front control, and stated that NRF forces made a "tactical withdrawal" from some areas.[30] On 8 September French intellectual Bernard-Henri Lévy shared a photo of himself talking to Massoud in Panjshir in 2020 on his Twitter page and also disputed the reports of the Taliban taking full control of the province.[citation needed]

See also

References

  1. ^ "گفت و گو با فرزند احمدشاه مسعود؛ "عملیات ما برای ادبیات‌مان است"". www.teribon.ir. 24 February 2014. Archived from the original on 31 July 2018.
  2. ^ "Ahmad Massoud Declared As His Father's Successor". TOLOnews. Archived from the original on 26 August 2021. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  3. ^ Cole, Matthew; Klippenstein, Ken (22 September 2021). "Afghan Resistance Leaders, Long Backed By CIA, Have Fled Following Taliban Takeover". The Intercept. Archived from the original on 21 September 2021.
  4. ^ He was mentioned as 27 years old in "Ahmad Massoud, l'héritier du lion" [Ahmad Massoud, the Heir of the Lion] (in French). 9 September 2016. Archived from the original on 19 August 2021. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  5. ^ a b "'My father was the first to negotiate with the Taliban'". TRT World. 3 June 2019. Archived from the original on 21 August 2021. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  6. ^ "Son of slain Afghan resistance hero Ahmad Shah Massoud enters political fray". www.rfi.fr. 6 September 2019. Archived from the original on 18 March 2020.
  7. ^ "Son of famed Afghan commander Massoud steps into spotlight". The Straits Times. 28 August 2019. Archived from the original on 19 August 2021. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
  8. ^ Anne Chaon (1 September 2016). "Lion of Panjshir's son ready to take up his Afghan destiny". Yahoo.com. Archived from the original on 17 August 2021. Retrieved 28 November 2016.
  9. ^ AFP (1 September 2016). "Lion of Panjshir: Ahmad Shah Masood's son ready to take up his Afghan destiny – The Express Tribune". Tribune.com.pk. Archived from the original on 22 August 2021. Retrieved 28 November 2016.
  10. ^ Casey, John (28 August 2021). "Meeting Ahmad Massoud, the Sandhurst graduate taking on the Taliban". The Spectator. Archived from the original on 27 August 2021. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
  11. ^ Malejacq, Romain (15 January 2020). Warlord Survival: The Delusion of State Building in Afghanistan. Cornell University Press. ISBN 9781501746437. Archived from the original on 9 April 2023. Retrieved 1 October 2020 – via Google Books.
  12. ^ Biloslavo, Fausto. "The Return of the Lion of Panjshir". InsideOver. Archived from the original on 20 August 2021. Retrieved 20 August 2021.
  13. ^ "Heir to Lion of Panjshir returns to reunite his father's followers". Archived from the original on 2 September 2021. Retrieved 13 April 2020 – via www.thetimes.co.uk.
  14. ^ Meuse, Alison Tahmizian (5 September 2019). "Afghanistan: Ahmad Massoud seizes father's torch". Asia Times. Archived from the original on 22 August 2021. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  15. ^ "Taliban seeks to share power in Afghanistan's government, but will ethnic groups approve?". PBS NewsHour. 14 December 2019. Archived from the original on 19 August 2021. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  16. ^ Glasse, Jennifer (11 September 2019). "Son of famed Afghan resistance fighter launches new political movement". CBC. Archived from the original on 17 August 2021. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  17. ^ "Ahmad Massoud: Decentralization is the Solution". www.thenationalnews.com. 3 July 2020. Archived from the original on 16 November 2020.
  18. ^ Massoud, Ahmad (14 April 2020). "What Is Missing From Afghan Peace Talks". New York Times. Archived from the original on 19 August 2021. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
  19. ^ "Son of slain Afghan commander Massoud warns of 'civil war' if US troops leave hastily". www.france24.com. Archived from the original on 20 August 2021. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
  20. ^ Glasse, Jennifer (11 September 2019). "Son of famed Afghan resistance fighter launches new political movement". CBC News. Archived from the original on 17 August 2021. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  21. ^ Zucchino, David; Fazi, Fatima (24 June 2021). "Attacked and Vulnerable, Some Afghans Are Forming Their Own Armies". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2 September 2021. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
  22. ^ Behzan, Frud (12 August 2021). "Afghanistan's Anti-Taliban Stronghold Gears Up For New Fight Against Militants". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Radio Azadi. Archived from the original on 12 August 2021. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
  23. ^ Massoud, Ahmad (18 August 2021). "Opinion: The mujahideen resistance to the Taliban begins now. But we need help". www.washingtonpost.com. Archived from the original on 18 August 2021.
  24. ^ Beaumont, Peter (22 August 2021). "Afghan civil war 'unavoidable' if Taliban refuse talks, says opposition leader". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 30 August 2021. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  25. ^ Duncan, Conrad (26 August 2021). "Who is Ahmad Massoud, the man building an anti-Taliban resistance in Afghanistan?". The Independent. Archived from the original on 26 August 2021. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
  26. ^ Mackenzie, James (22 August 2021). "Anti-Taliban leader Massoud wants to talk but ready to fight". Reuters. Archived from the original on 22 August 2021. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  27. ^ Pannett, Rachel (6 September 2021). "Panjshir Valley, last resistance holdout in Afghanistan, falls to the Taliban". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 18 October 2021. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  28. ^ "Afghanistan: Ahmad Massoud says he is alive and resistance will continue | Indiablooms - First Portal on Digital News Management". Indiablooms.com. Archived from the original on 6 September 2021. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  29. ^ Mohan, Geeta (9 September 2021). "Ahmad Massoud, Saleh safe, Panjshir hasn't fallen: NRF says Taliban will suffer consequences:Exclusive". India Today. Archived from the original on 9 September 2021. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  30. ^ "NRF says 60 percent of Afghanistan's Panjshir still under control, Ahmad Massoud and Amrullah Saleh alive". First Post. 9 September 2021. Archived from the original on 9 September 2021. Retrieved 9 September 2021.

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