Juma Khan Hamdard (; born 1959) is an

Afghan Afghan or Afgan may refer to: Related to Afghanistan *Afghans, historically refers to the Pashtun people. It is both an ethnicity and nationality. Ethnicity wise, it refers to the Pashtuns. In modern terms, it means both the citizens of Afghanist ...

politician. He served as the security adviser to President

Ashraf Ghani Mohammad Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai (born 19 May 1949) is an Afghan former politician and economist who served as the president of Afghanistan from September 2014 until August 2021, when his government was 2021 Taliban offensive, overthrown by the Ta ...

. He served as governor of

Paktia Province Paktia (Pashto – ''Paktyā'') is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the east of the country. Forming part of the larger Loya Paktia region, Paktia Province is divided into 15 districts and has a population of roughly 623,00 ...

from 2007 to 2015, previously serving as governor of Baghlan and later Jowzjan province. He is the head of the alliance of H.A.A Councils.

Early life

Hamdard is an ethnic

Pashtun Pashtuns (, , ; ;), also known as Pakhtuns, or Pathans, are an Iranic ethnic group primarily residing in southern and eastern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan. They were historically also referred to as Afghans until 1964 after the ...

of the Wardak tribe from

Mazari Sharif Mazar-i-Sharīf ( ; Dari and ), also known as Mazar-e Sharīf or simply Mazar, is the fifth-largest city in Afghanistan by population, with the estimates varying from 500,000-680,000. It is the capital of Balkh province and is linked by highways ...

. He was born in 1959 in

Balkh Province Balkh (Dari and , ) is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the north of the country. It is divided into 15 districts and has a population of about 1,509,183, which is multi-ethnic and mostly a Persian-speaking society. The city o ...

.Province: “Paktya”
Naval Postgraduate School, Program for Culture & Conflict Studies

Career

He became a popular leader of the Pashtun community of Balkh and Mazar-i-Sharif. Hamdard was a member of Hezbi Islami and fought against the

Soviets The Soviet people () were the citizens and nationals of the Soviet Union. This demonym was presented in the ideology of the country as the "new historical unity of peoples of different nationalities" (). Nationality policy in the Soviet Union ...

under the leadership of

Gulbuddin Hekmatyar Gulbuddin Hekmatyar (born 1 August 1949) is an Afghan politician, and former mujahideen leader and drug trafficker. He is the founder and current leader of the Hezb-e-Islami Gulbuddin political party, so called after Mohammad Yunus Khalis spl ...

. In 1994, his Party Hezbi Islami allied with

Abdul Rashid Dostum Abdul Rashid Dostum ( ; ; Uzbek language, Uzbek Uzbek alphabet, Latin: , Uzbek Uzbek alphabet, Cyrillic: , ; born 25 March 1954) is an Afghan former Officer (armed forces), military officer, warlord and exiled politician. He is the founder and ...

, an ethnic Uzbek, against the Shura-e Nazar. In 1997, he helped the Taliban's side against Dostum's forces in a bloody campaign. Following the US-led coalition's invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001, Hamdard resumed a weak alliance with Dostum's forces. On the eve of the presidential election in October 2004, he pledged support to Karzai. He became governor of Baghlan, and later Jowzjan. Dostum's power base was in the ethnic Uzbek heartland. His Uzbek supporters did not want an ethnic Pashtun as governor. In May 2007 police forces under governor Juma khan Hamdard shot at militant Uzbek demonstrators, while they were trying to force their way into the Governor's office in

Sheberghan Sheberghān or Shaburghān or shāhpurgān ( Uzbek, Pashto, ), also spelled ''Shebirghan'' and ''Shibarghan'', is the capital city of the Jowzjan Province in northern Afghanistan. The city of Sheberghan has a population of 175,599. It has four ...

, killing 13 and injuring more than 30. On December 17, 2007, he was appointed governor of

Paktia Paktia (Pashto – ''Paktyā'') is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the east of the country. Forming part of the larger Loya Paktia region, Paktia Province is divided into 15 districts and has a population of roughly 623,0 ...

Province, replacing Rahmatullah Rahmat. Hamdard is one of President Karzai's tribal affairs advisors. Juma Khan Hamdard is an important personality of northern Afghanistan. He has played a pivotal role in safeguarding the interests of the Pashtuns. He enjoys a mass base of support among the Pashtun settlers in the Northern Afghanistan. He was a military commander and politician. Since the fall of the communist regime in 1992, he has trodden a very cautious approach in protecting the interests of Pashtuns in Northern Afghanistan in the wake of rising anti-Pashtun sentiments.

Personal life

He has six sons, the eldest son Gul Rahman Hamdard is a member of the parliament.

References

External links

“Dostum: Afghanistan’s Embattled Warlord”

The Jamestown Foundation The Jamestown Foundation is a Washington, D.C.–based non-partisan defense policy think tank. Founded in 1984 as a platform to support Soviet defectors, its stated mission is to inform and educate policy makers about events and trends, which i ...

, April 18, 2008
“Reconstruction Team Serves on Front Line of War on Terror”
American Forces Press Service, February 10, 2009

UNHCR The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is a United Nations agency mandated to aid and Humanitarian protection, protect refugees, Internally displaced person, forcibly displaced communities, and Statelessness, s ...

, Institute for War and Peace, September 29, 2009
“Governor of Paktia, Juma Khan Hamdard”
Demotix.com, November 15, 2009
“The North on the Brink”
Afghanistan Votes.com, June 15, 2010 {{DEFAULTSORT:Hamdard, Juma Khan Pashtun politicians 1954 births Living people Hezb-e Islami Gulbuddin politicians Governors of Paktia Province Governors of Jowzjan Province Governors of Baghlan Province People from Balkh Province