Amrullah Saleh

Amrullah Saleh is an Afghan politician and former intelligence chief who served as the First Vice President of Afghanistan under President Ashraf Ghani from 2020 until the government's collapse in August 2021. A prominent figure from the Panjshir Province, he is known for his long-standing opposition to the Taliban and his role in the Northern Alliance following the group's initial takeover in the 1990s. Saleh's career has been defined by his leadership within the National Directorate of Security (NDS) and his subsequent political activism, positioning him as a key anti-Taliban figure in the aftermath of the 2021 Taliban offensive.

Early life and education

Amrullah Saleh was born on 15 October 1972 in the Panjshir Valley, a region historically significant for its resistance against the Soviet invasion and later the Taliban. He attended Amani High School in Kabul before the outbreak of the Afghan Civil War (1992–1996) disrupted his formal education. During the rise of the Taliban government in 1996, he joined the forces of the Northern Alliance, led by Ahmad Shah Massoud, where he received practical training in intelligence and guerrilla warfare. His early experiences in the resistance movements against the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (1996–2001) fundamentally shaped his political and ideological outlook.

Career in intelligence and security

Following the United States invasion of Afghanistan and the fall of the Taliban in 2001, Saleh's expertise was utilized in building the new Afghan intelligence apparatus. He held various positions within the National Directorate of Security, eventually being appointed its director by President Hamid Karzai in 2004. During his tenure, which lasted until 2010, he worked closely with international allies, including the Central Intelligence Agency and MI6, focusing on counter-terrorism operations against al-Qaeda and Taliban insurgents. His leadership of the NDS was marked by a reputation for effectiveness and a hardline stance against Pakistani intelligence services, whom he frequently accused of supporting the Taliban.

Political career and vice presidency

After leaving the NDS, Saleh remained politically active, founding the National Congress Party of Afghanistan and becoming a vocal critic of the Karzai administration's reconciliation efforts with the Taliban. In the 2019 Afghan presidential election, he joined the ticket of Ashraf Ghani as his running mate and was inaugurated as First Vice President in February 2020. In this role, he often represented a faction skeptical of the Doha Agreement (2020) between the United States and the Taliban, arguing it would lead to the collapse of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. His vice presidency was characterized by his continued focus on security issues and public denunciations of Taliban violence.

Role in the 2021 Taliban offensive and aftermath

During the rapid 2021 Taliban offensive, as provincial capitals fell and Ashraf Ghani fled the country on 15 August 2021, Saleh declared himself the "legitimate caretaker president" based on the Afghan constitution, citing his position as vice president. He retreated to the Panjshir Valley, the traditional stronghold of the Northern Alliance, to organize armed resistance alongside Ahmad Massoud, son of Ahmad Shah Massoud, and former Minister of Defense Bismillah Khan Mohammadi. This led to the Panjshir conflict (2021–present) against the newly established Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (2021–present). After the resistance suffered significant territorial losses, Saleh's public whereabouts became uncertain, though he continued to issue statements opposing the Taliban regime from abroad.

Political views and public image

Amrullah Saleh is widely regarded as a staunch Afghan nationalist and a proponent of a centralized, democratic republic. He maintains a fiercely anti-Taliban and anti-Pakistani establishment stance, views consistent with his Northern Alliance heritage. His public image is polarizing; supporters, particularly among Afghanistan's Tajiks and other non-Pashtun ethnic groups, see him as a symbol of defiant resistance and a guardian of the republican values. Critics, however, accuse him of ethnic partisanship and contributing to the political fragmentation that weakened the Ghani government. Internationally, he is viewed as a key figure in the ongoing anti-Taliban opposition movement.