Qatar’s Policy of Supporting Extremists and Terrorists
(New York) – Qatar continues to host terrorists from various extremist groups, including the Taliban, posing a continuing threat to regional and international security, the Counter Extremism Project (CEP) said in releasing an updated list of major terrorist operatives and financiers currently residing in Qatar.
The Taliban—the terror group that once ruled Afghanistan and shielded Osama bin Laden—has an official office in Qatar’s capital, Doha. CEP has previously called on Qatar to expel or arrest all members of the Taliban currently residing in Qatar and has expanded the list to include the following Taliban terrorist operatives and financiers:
- Din Mohammad Hanif: Hanif is a U.N.-sanctioned Taliban senior leader who previously served as the Minister of Higher Education and the Master of Planning under the Taliban regime. According to the United Nations, Hanif also served as a member of the Taliban Supreme Council responsible for Takhar province and his home province of Badakhshan.
- Shahabuddin Delawar: Delawar is a U.N.-sanctioned Taliban senior leader. Delawar has acted as a Taliban envoy since moving to Qatar and is sanctioned by Australia, France, the European Union, and the United Kingdom.
- Khairullah Khairkhwa: Khairkhwa is a U.N.-sanctioned senior Taliban leader. According to documents from the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Khairkhwa was “directly associated” with former al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and former Taliban leader Mullah Omar. The U.S. House Committee on Armed Services has also noted that Khairkhwa is closely acquainted with current al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri.
- Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanekzai Padshah Khan: Padshah Khan is a U.N.-sanctioned former deputy minister in the deposed Taliban government in Afghanistan. He has headed the Taliban’s office in Qatar since August 2015.
To learn more about CEP’s HARBORS Campaign: Qatar, including other extremist and terrorist leaders and groups in Qatar, please click here.