Press Trust of India
Islamabad, July 31: Jalaluddin Haqqani, head of the dreaded “Haqqani Network” which is behind some of the deadliest attacks against Indian interests in Afghanistan, has been dead for over a year, militant sources said Friday, two days after news of Taliban chief Mullah Omar’s death in Pakistan surfaced. Jalaluddin — father of Sirajuddin Haqqani who was recently made deputy of Taliban’s new chief Mullah Akhtar Mansoor — died a year ago due to prolonged illness and was buried in Afghan province of Khost, Taliban sources said.
Jalaluddin, who was in his 70s, rose to fame among the jihadist circles after his feats of fighting against the Soviet forces in the 1980s. It was not immediately clear where exactly he died. According to US and Afghan intelligence reports, the Haqqani Network was based in Pakistan’s tribal North Waziristan till June last year when military operation was launched in the area though it has carried out several major attacks inside Afghanistan.
Both Jalaluddin and his son Sirajuddin carry a US bounty of $10 million each on their heads. Haqqani network, which is linked to al-Qaeda has also been blamed for several deadly attacks against western and Indian interests in Afghanistan, including the 2008 bombing of the Indian mission in Kabul.
