Mohammad Yaqoob

Mullah Mohammad Yaqoob Mujahid (Pashto/, , ; born 1990) is an Afghan commander and cleric who is the second deputy leader of Afghanistan and the acting defense minister. He has been a deputy leader of the Taliban since 2016, and was additionally appointed to his ministerial role after the Taliban's victory over Western-backed forces in the 2001–2021 war. He has been the Taliban's military chief since 2020. Biography Mullah Yaqoob is an ethnic Pashtun of the Hotak tribe, which is part of the larger Ghilji branch. He is the eldest son of the late Taliban founder Mohammed Omar. He received his religious education in various seminaries in Karachi, Pakistan. When his father died in April 2013 and rumors escalated that he had been assassinated by rival Akhtar Mansour, Yaqoob denied the rumor, insisting that his father had died of natural causes. Leadership positions In 2016, Yaqoob was assigned by the Taliban to be in charge of the military commission in 15 of Afghanistan's 34 provinces. The military commission, then headed by Ibrahim Sadr, is responsible for overseeing all military affairs of the Taliban. In addition, Yaqoob was included in the Taliban's top decision-making council, the Rehbari Shura.