Ustad Ustad, ustadh, ustaz or ustadz (abbreviated as Ust., Ut. or Ud.; from Persian language, Persian ''ustād'') is an honorific title used in West Asia, North Africa, Central Asia, South Asia and Southeast Asia. It is used in various languages, incl ...

Muhammad Akbari () known as Ustad Akbari, is a former

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 ...

jihadist Jihadism is a neologism for modern, armed militant Political aspects of Islam, Islamic movements that seek to Islamic state, establish states based on Islamic principles. In a narrower sense, it refers to the belief that armed confrontation ...

commander in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

, who has held various political affiliations during periods of conflict in Afghanistan. He was the representative of

Bamyan Bamyan (), also spelled Bamian or Bamiyan, is the capital of Bamyan Province in central Afghanistan. Its population of approximately 100,000 people makes it the largest city in Hazarajat. Bamyan is at an altitude of about above sea level. The ...

during the fifteenth and sixteenth sessions of Afghanistan's parliament, and a member of the

House of Elders House of Elders could refer to: * House of Elders (Afghanistan) * House of Elders (Somaliland) See also * Elder (disambiguation) * Eldership (disambiguation) * Council of Elders (disambiguation) Council of Elders may refer to: * Council of El ...

from 2017 onward.

Early life

Muhammad Akbari was born in 1945 in

in Waras District of

Bamyan Province Bamyan, also spelled Bamiyan, Bāmīān or Bāmyān (), is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan with the city of Bamyan as its center, located in central parts of Afghanistan. The terrain in Bamyan is mountainous or semi-mountainous ...

. Akbari studied primary education in Islamic schools in Bamyan, Afghanistan from 1961 to 1971, later studying more in

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

. In 1976 he earned the equivalent of a bachelor's degree in religious studies from a university in Iraq, later acquiring a Ph.D-level education.

Relations with the Taliban

Prior to the Taliban's takeover of Kabul, Ustad Akbari was a senior member in Islamic Unity Party of Afghanistan, the primary Hazara party of Afghanistan. Due to conflicts with the leader of the party's central leadership under Abdul Ali Mazari, who he accused of a coup within the party, he struck an agreement with the

Taliban , leader1_title = Supreme Leader of Afghanistan, Supreme leaders , leader1_name = {{indented plainlist, * Mullah Omar{{Natural Causes{{nbsp(1994–2013) * Akhtar Mansour{{Assassinated (2015–2016) * Hibatullah Akhundzada (2016–present) ...

and created a separate branch of the party known as the National Islamic Unity Party of Afghanistan, which gained the allegiance of most party members around Bamyan province. During this period of the first Taliban government, he was considered the senior-most Shia Hazara to support the Taliban. Following the American Invasion of Afghanistan, Ustad Akbari continued to represent his home region of Bamyan, no longer being affiliated with the Taliban. He was elected to lead Bamyan in the fifteenth and sixteenth sessions of the Afghan parliament, before becoming a member of the House of Elders in 2017. After the Taliban offensive of 2021 brought the Islamic Emirate back to power, he issued various statements in support of working with them. He participated in Jafar Mahdavi's Shia Commission in meeting with the Taliban, and encouraged the appointment of Shias to positions of political power in the new government. He later met with Minister of Information and Culture Khairullah Khairkhwa and Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Abdul Qahar Balkhi to discuss the situation of Afghan Shias.

Notes

Living people 1945 births Hezbe Wahdat politicians People from Bamyan Province {{Afghanistan-politician-stub