Qari Saifullah Akhtar
Saifullah Akhtar قاری صیف الله اختر | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1960 |
| Died | 9 January 2017 (aged 56–57) |
| Citizenship | Pakistani Afghani |
| Alma mater | Jamia Uloom-ul-Islamia |
| Known for | Afghan mujahideen leader and alleged member of Al-Qaeda, |
| Political party | Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami Harkat-ul-Mujahideen |
| Military career | |
| Conflicts | |
Qari Saifullah Akhtar (Urdu: قاری سیف اللہ اختر; born 1960 – died 9 January 2017) was Pakistani mujahideen jihadist leader and Islamist cleric, who was the leader of Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami (HUJI), a jihadist organization.
He was reportedly involved in the 1995 coup attempt to topple the Pakistani government led by Benazir Bhutto. He was also an alleged member of Al-Qaeda and graduated from Jamia Uloom-ul-Islamia in Karachi.
He was sanctioned as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist under the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List by the United States Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control; his year of birth being listed as either 1964 or from 1963 to 1965, with a place of birth in Daraz Jaldak, Qalat District, Zabul Province, Afghanistan with a citizenship of both Pakistan and Afghanistan and further address in Quetta, Pakistan. He was from the Tokhi tribe of Pashtuns while his title qari means a reciter of Quran.
He was killed by National Directorate of Security during a raid in Nawa District, Ghazni Province of Afghanistan on 9 January 2017.