Qari Ziaur Rahman is a citizen of Afghanistan who is reported to be a leader of the Taliban's and

al-Qaeda Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremism, Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arab, Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military ta ...

's leadership. He was believed to have been killed in March 2011 during an attack on militants by the Pakistani military, however Ziaur Rahman later phoned media reporters to confirm that he survived the airstrike.

Early life

Qari's father, Ahengar Dilbar, was a blacksmith. Qari Ziaur Rahman reports being from

Konar Province Kunar (Pashto: ; Dari: ) is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the northeastern part of the country. Its capital is Asadabad. Its population is estimated to be 508,224. Kunar's major political groups include Wahhabis or Ahl-e- Ha ...

. He reports that he memorized the entire Koran while a youth. According to a profile in the '' Asia Times'', he grew up surrounded by Arab foreign fighters during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan. According to the ''Asia Times'' he is in his thirties.

Militant career

''Asia Times'' reports that Qari Ziaur Rahman is a leader in the insurgency's efforts in Konar, and that the United States has offered $350,000 bounty for information leading to his death or capture. As is often the case, Taliban exaggerate claims of monetary rewards, proposing inflated figures as propaganda to build credibility among insurgency personnel. Qari Ziaur Rahman was captured in Pakistan by operatives of CIA &

ISI ISI or Isi may refer to: Organizations * Intercollegiate Studies Institute, a classical conservative organization focusing on college students * Ice Skating Institute, a trade association for ice rinks * Indian Standards Institute, former name of ...

. But he was not transferred to US custody. Instead he was part of a prisoner exchange for Pakistani military officials. Bill Roggio, writing in the '' Long War Journal'', reported that he was rumored to have been killed in mid-June 2009. Two weeks later Roggio reported the Pakistan had offered a series of bounties. He reported they offered the equivalent of US$615,000 for Baitullah Mehsud. He reported that for Qari Zaur Rahman they only offered the equivalent of $65,100. Afghan forces reported that Rahman was killed in a coalition drone strike on 21 August 2013. He was reported attending a meeting with three other local insurgents, who were killed, in the Marawara district of Kunar. Reports of Rahman's death were proven false when he was interviewed by NBC News in May 2014.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rahman, Qari Ziaur Taliban leaders Pashtun people Living people Afghan al-Qaeda members Afghan expatriates in Pakistan Year of birth missing (living people)