Islamic Party of Afghanistan

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The Islamic Party of Afghanistan, known as Islamic Party of Afghanistan, Hizb-i-Islami or Hizb-e-Islami, formed in 1975, and was a resistance group against the Soviets in the Afghanistan War (1978-1992). The party is Islamist but not Salafist, willing to work outside religious structures. ^[1]

In 1978-79, it broke into two factions. One, Islamic Party of Afghanistan Khalis, loyal to took away away support in Nangarhar Province and among the non-Syed mullahs on the southern and eastern borders. Khales' departure put Gulbuddin Hekmatyar in charge of what became the Islamic Party of Afghanistan Gulbuddin; a former prime minister and politician who frequently changed alliances. After the 2001 invasion, Hekmatyar associated it with the Taliban and al-Qaeda. Today, there are three claimants to the name:

• Islamic Party of Afghanistan Khalis
• Islamic Party of Afghanistan Gulbuddin
• Islamic Party of Afghanistan Decision Making Council

With support from Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence, he became emerged as the undisputed head of Islamic Party of Afghanistan after 1987 and by 1989 was allowed to overcome his rivals, and was Prime Minister between 1992 and 1996. Pakistan, however, dropped their support.

150 of its leaders, in October 2004, rejected Hekmatyar and supported for Karzai a month before the election. This group registered with the Ministry of Justice with the same name, as Hekmatyar's faction, Hizb-e-Islami Afghanistan (Islamic Party of Afghanistan - HIA).^[2]

In May 2005, party leaders met with President Hamid Karzai and renounced that association, calling their faction the Islamic Party of Afghanistan “Decision Making Council,” distinguishing it from " Islamic Party of Afghanistan Gulbuddin." The new faction was led by Mohammed Khalid Faruqi, and ten other activists with fighting records, and claimed have the support of some 90 percent of Islamic Party of Afghanistan membership. ^[3] Theh Jamestown Foundation saw them as third-tier leadership figures, linked to Nangarhar Province, where the Kabul government has more influence than on the borders. None were known to be close to Hekmatyar. They are, however, Pashtuns that form the core Taliban constituency.

The new faction had several members who, while breaking with Hekmatyar, did not go to the Kabul meeting. They include Homayun Jarir and Abdul Sardar Farid, who are thought to be in Pakistan. Hekmatyar's second-level deputies, Qotboddin Helal and Dr. Ghayrat Bahir, also are in Pakistan, but they also may be splitting.

Still affiliated with Hekmatyar are Kashmir Khan, Haji Eshanollah, Abdul Salam Hashemi, Engineer Obaidollah, and Munshi Abdul Majid.

In 2006, Islamic Party of Afghanistan held 34 seats in the Afghan assembly, and claim to have broken with Hekmatyar. ^[4]

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