Said Akbar Khan Babrakzai or Said Akbar Khan (1921 or 1922 – 16 October 1951) was an Afghan tribesman who

assassinated Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have a ...

the

first First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

and a leading founding father of Pakistan,

Liaquat Ali Khan Liaquat Ali Khan ( ur, ; 1 October 1895 – 16 October 1951), also referred to in Pakistan as ''Quaid-e-Millat'' () or ''Shaheed-e-Millat'' ( ur, lit=Martyr of the Nation, label=none, ), was a Pakistani statesman, lawyer, political theoris ...

, at Company Bagh in

Rawalpindi Rawalpindi ( or ; Urdu, ) is a city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad, and third largest in Punjab after Lahore and Faisalabad. Rawalpindi is next to Pakistan's ...

on 16 October 1951. Belonging to the Pashtun Babrakzai clan of

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

, he fought against the

Afghan government The government of Afghanistan, officially called the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is the central government of Afghanistan, a unitary state. Under the leadership of the Taliban, the government is a theocracy and an emirate with political powe ...

during the Tribal revolts.

Personal life

Said Akbar was born in 1921 or 1922 in

Khost Khōst ( ps, خوست) is the capital of Khost Province in Afghanistan. It is the largest city in the southeastern part of the country, and also the largest in the region of Loya Paktia. To the south and east of Khost lie Waziristan and Kurram in ...

. He was the son of Babrak Khan, a Zadran chieftain. When his father died, Said's brother, Mazrak became the new chief. Mazrak would fight against the Afghan government during the

Afghan tribal revolts of 1944–1947 The Afghan tribal revolts of 1944–1947 or the Khost disturbances were a series of tribal revolts in the Kingdom of Afghanistan by Zadran, Safi and Mangal tribesmen which lasted from February 1944 to January 1947. The causes of the revolts la ...

to support the restoration of King

Amanullah Khan Ghazi Amanullah Khan (Pashto and Dari: ; 1 June 1892 – 25 April 1960) was the sovereign of Afghanistan from 1919, first as Emir and after 1926 as King, until his abdication in 1929. After the end of the Third Anglo-Afghan War in August 1919, ...

. Said was a minor leader in these revolts, fighting for Mazrak. Said had two sons, including Dilawar Khan. His wife was Musammat Malmal Bibi.

Assassination of Liaqat Ali Khan

On October 16, 1951, during a public meeting, Said Akbar Khan shot the

Prime Minister of Pakistan The prime minister of Pakistan ( ur, , romanized: Wazīr ē Aʿẓam , ) is the head of government of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and his chosen cabinet, despite the president of Paki ...

twice in a park in

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

. The assassin was fatally shot by police officers seconds later. Liaquat was rushed to a hospital where he passed away. Said Akbar's motives to assassinate Liaqat Ali Khan remain unclear as he was shot dead on the spot. However, there are many conspiracy theories regarding the assassination of Liaqat Ali Khan which claim that Liaqat was assassinated on the behest of foreign powers. Some say it was a reaction from the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

for his anti-communist and pro-western policies, while others blame the

USA The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

for ordering the killing due to Khan's alleged non-cooperation on the Iranian issue and an alleged demand for the US to vacate its airbases in Pakistan. The Afghan government has, however, denied any role in the assassination of Liaqat and also disowned the act of Said Akbar Babrakzai.

Family

External links

The Assassination of the Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan: The Fateful Journey

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Babrak, Said Akbar 1920s births 1951 deaths Pashtun people Political history of Pakistan Liaquat Ali Khan People shot dead by law enforcement officers in Pakistan Assassins of heads of government People from Khost Year of birth uncertain