Islamic Unity of Afghanistan Mujahideen
Encyclopedia
The Islamic Unity of Afghanistan Mujahideen (also known as the Seven Party Mujahideen Alliance or Peshawar Seven) was an Afghan
organization formed in May 1985 by the seven Afghan mujahideen
parties fighting against the Soviet
and Democratic Republic of Afghanistan
forces in the Soviet-Afghan War. The alliance sought to function as a united diplomatic front towards the world opinion, and sought representation in the United Nations
and Organisation of the Islamic Conference
.
The constituents of the alliance fell into two categories, the political Islamists: Khalis faction
(Khalis
), Hezbi Islami
(Hekmatyar), Jamiat-i-Islami (Rabbani
), and Islamic Union for the Liberation of Afghanistan
(Sayyaf
), and the traditionalists: National Islamic Front for Afghanistan
(Gailani), Afghanistan National Liberation Front (Mojaddedi
), and Revolutionary Islamic Movement
(Mohammadi
).
All of the groups were Sunni Muslims, and all were majority Pashtun
except Jamiat-i-Islami, which was Tajik. Another alliance based out of Iran was composed of mainly Shi'a Muslims.
Although the alliance took its formal shape in the 1980s, it had de facto existed as a political bloc since May 1979, when the Pakistan
i government decided to limit the flow of foreign financial aid, mainly from the United States
(under the Reagan Doctrine
) and Saudi Arabia
, to the said seven organizations, thus cutting off monetary supply to nationalist and leftwing resistance groups.
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
organization formed in May 1985 by the seven Afghan mujahideen
Mujahideen
Mujahideen are Muslims who struggle in the path of God. The word is from the same Arabic triliteral as jihad .Mujahideen is also transliterated from Arabic as mujahedin, mujahedeen, mudžahedin, mudžahidin, mujahidīn, mujaheddīn and more.-Origin of the concept:The beginnings of Jihad are traced...
parties fighting against the Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
and Democratic Republic of Afghanistan
Democratic Republic of Afghanistan
The Democratic Republic of Afghanistan was a government of Afghanistan between 1978 and 1992. It was both ideologically close to and economically dependent on the Soviet Union, and was a major belligerent of the Afghan Civil War.- Saur Revolution :...
forces in the Soviet-Afghan War. The alliance sought to function as a united diplomatic front towards the world opinion, and sought representation in the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
and Organisation of the Islamic Conference
Organisation of the Islamic Conference
The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation Upon the groups's renaming, some sources provided the English-language translation "Organisation of the Islamic Cooperation", but and have since indicated the preferred English translation omits the "the". is an international organisation consisting of 57...
.
The constituents of the alliance fell into two categories, the political Islamists: Khalis faction
Khalis faction
In 1979 Maulawi Khalis separated from Gulbuddin Hekmatyar's Hezb-e Islami and formed his own resistance group. It was also called Hezb-e Islami. The two parties were distinguished as Hezb-e Islami Gulbuddin and Hezb-e Islami Khalis, after the names of their respective leaders.The Khalis party was...
(Khalis
Mulavi Younas Khalis
Mawlawi Mohammad Yunus Khalis was a mujahideen commander in Afghanistan during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. His party was called Hezb-i-Islami , the same as Gulbuddin Hekmatyar's party...
), Hezbi Islami
Hezbi Islami
Hezbi Islami , meaning Islamic Party is an Islamist organization commonly known for fighting in the Marxist Government of Afghanistan and their close ally the Soviet Union. Founded and led by Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, it was established in Pakistan in 1975...
(Hekmatyar), Jamiat-i-Islami (Rabbani
Burhanuddin Rabbani
Professor Burhanuddin Rabbani was President of the Islamic State of Afghanistan from 1992 to 1996. After the Taliban government was toppled during Operation Enduring Freedom, Rabbani returned to Kabul and served as a temporary President from November to December 20, 2001, when Hamid Karzai was...
), and Islamic Union for the Liberation of Afghanistan
Islamic Union for the Liberation of Afghanistan
The Islamic Dawah Organization of Afghanistan is a political party in Afghanistan led by Abdul Rasul Sayyaf. Founded in the early 1980s as the Islamic Union for the Liberation of Afghanistan , it was originally an attempt to bring unity amongst Islamist opposition forces in Afghanistan...
(Sayyaf
Abdul Rasul Sayyaf
Ustad Abdul Rab Rasul Sayyaf is an Afghan Islamist politician. He took part in the war against the PDPA government in the 1980s, leading the Mujahedin faction Islamic Union for the Liberation of Afghanistan....
), and the traditionalists: National Islamic Front for Afghanistan
National Islamic Front (Afghanistan)
The National Islamic Front of Afghanistan or NIFA is an Afghan party led by Sufi leader Pir Sayed Ahmed Gailani...
(Gailani), Afghanistan National Liberation Front (Mojaddedi
Sibghatullah Mojaddedi
Sibghatullah Mojaddedi , served as the first President of the Islamic State of Afghanistan after the fall of the communist regime in 1992. He is also the leader of the Afghan National Liberation Front...
), and Revolutionary Islamic Movement
Harakat-i-Inqilab-i-Islami
Harakat-i-Inqilab-i-Islami was a traditionalist Afghan mujahedeen group fighting against Soviet forces during the Soviet war in Afghanistan. Mohammad Nabi Mohammadi was the leader of the group. It operated Southern Afghan Provinces of Kandahar, Helmand, Uruzgan, Ghazni, Paktika, and Wardak...
(Mohammadi
Mohammad Nabi Mohammadi
Maulana Mohammad Nabi Mohammadi was an Afghan politician who served as Vice President of Afghanistan under the Mujahideen from 1992 to about 1996.-Biography:...
).
All of the groups were Sunni Muslims, and all were majority Pashtun
Pashtun people
Pashtuns or Pathans , also known as ethnic Afghans , are an Eastern Iranic ethnic group with populations primarily between the Hindu Kush mountains in Afghanistan and the Indus River in Pakistan...
except Jamiat-i-Islami, which was Tajik. Another alliance based out of Iran was composed of mainly Shi'a Muslims.
Although the alliance took its formal shape in the 1980s, it had de facto existed as a political bloc since May 1979, when the Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
i government decided to limit the flow of foreign financial aid, mainly from the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
(under the Reagan Doctrine
Reagan Doctrine
The Reagan Doctrine was a strategy orchestrated and implemented by the United States under the Reagan Administration to oppose the global influence of the Soviet Union during the final years of the Cold War...
) and Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
, to the said seven organizations, thus cutting off monetary supply to nationalist and leftwing resistance groups.