Islamabad Accord
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The Islamabad Accord was a peace and power-sharing agreement signed on 7 March 1993 between the warring parties in the War in Afghanistan (1992–1996), one party being the
Islamic State of Afghanistan The Islamic State of Afghanistan ( fa, , ''Dawlat-i Islāmī-yi Afghānistan'', ps, , ''Da Afghanistan Islami Dowlat'') was the government of Afghanistan, established by the Peshawar Accords on 26 April 1992 by many, but not all, Afgha ...
and the other an alliance of militias led by
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar Gulbuddin Hekmatyar ( ps, ګلب الدين حكمتيار; born 1 August 1949) is an Afghan politician, former mujahideen leader and drug trafficker. He is the founder and current leader of the Hezb-e-Islami Gulbuddin political party, so calle ...
. The Defense Minister of Afghanistan,
Ahmad Shah Massoud ) , branch = Jamiat-e Islami / Shura-e Nazar Afghan Armed Forces United Islamic Front , serviceyears = 1975–2001 , rank = General , unit = , commands = Mujahideen commander during the Soviet–Afghan Wa ...
, resigned his position in exchange for peace, as requested by Hekmatyar who saw Massoud as a personal rival. Hekmatyar took the long-offered position of prime minister. The agreement proved short-lived, however, as Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and his allies soon resumed the bombardment of Kabul.


Text of the Islamabad Accord

An excerpt from the text of the Islamabad Accord as provided by the
University of Ulster sco, Ulstèr Universitie , image = Ulster University coat of arms.png , caption = , motto_lang = , mottoeng = , latin_name = Universitas Ulidiae , established = 1865 – Magee College 1953 - Magee Un ...
:


Aftermath

The Defense Minister of Afghanistan,
Ahmad Shah Massoud ) , branch = Jamiat-e Islami / Shura-e Nazar Afghan Armed Forces United Islamic Front , serviceyears = 1975–2001 , rank = General , unit = , commands = Mujahideen commander during the Soviet–Afghan Wa ...
, resigned his position in exchange for peace, as requested by Hekmatyar who saw Massoud as a personal rival.
Burhanuddin Rabbani Burhānuddīn Rabbānī (Persian: ; 20 September 1940 – 20 September 2011) was an Afghanistani politician and teacher who served as President of Afghanistan from 1992 to 1996 (in exile from 1996 to 2001). Born in the Badakhshan Province, Rab ...
, belonging to the same party as Massoud, remained president while Gulbuddin Hekmatyar took the long-offered position of prime minister. Only two days after the Islamabad Accord was put into effect, however, Hekmatyar's allies of
Hezb-e Wahdat Hezb-e Wahdat-e Islami Afghanistan ( prs, حزب وحدت اسلامی افغانستان, "the Islamic Unity Party of Afghanistan"), shortened to Hezbe Wahdat (, "the Unity Party"), is an Afghan political party founded in 1989. Like most contemp ...
were again rocketing areas in Kabul. Both the Wahhabi Pashtun
Ittehad-i Islami The Islamic Dawah Organization of Afghanistan ( ps, د اسلامي دعوت تنظيم افغانستان, fa, تنظیم دعوت اسلامی افغانستان, ''Tanzim-e Dahwat-e Islami-ye Afghanistan'') is a political party in Afghanistan ...
of
Abdul Rasul Sayyaf Abdulrab Rasul Sayyaf ( ; ps, عبدالرسول سیاف; born 1946) is an exiled Afghan politician and former mujahideen commander. He took part in the war against the Marxist–Leninist People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA) govern ...
backed by Saudi Arabia and the Shia Hazara Hezb-e Wahdat supported by Iran remained involved in heavy fighting against each other. Hekmatyar proved afraid to enter Kabul proper, chairing only one cabinet meeting.
Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made h ...
-winning author
Roy Gutman Roy Gutman (born March 5, 1944) is an American journalist and author. Biography Gutman received a B.A. degree from Haverford College with a major in History and an MSc. degree from the London School of Economics in International Relations. Roy ...
of the
United States Institute of Peace The United States Institute of Peace (USIP) is an American Federal government of the United States, federal institution tasked with promoting conflict resolution and prevention worldwide. It provides research, analysis, and training to individual ...
wrote in ''How We Missed the Story: Osama bin Laden, the Taliban, and the Hijacking of Afghanistan'': Hekmatyar, who was generally opposed to coalition government but strived for undisputed power, had disputes with other parties over the selection of cabinet members and again launched major attacks against Kabul for one month. The President, Burhanuddin Rabbani, was attacked when he attempted to meet Hekmatyar. Massoud resumed his responsibilities as minister of defence consolidating his control over regions north of Kabul while another of Rabbani's senior commanders
Ismail Khan Mohammad Ismail Khan (Dari/Pashto: محمد اسماعیل خان) (born 1946) is an Afghan former politician who served as Minister of Energy and Water from 2005 to 2013 and before that served as the governor of Herat Province. Originally a cap ...
allied to local Pashtuns was able to drive Hekmatyar's people from parts of
Helmand Helmand (Pashto/Dari: ; ), also known as Hillmand, in ancient times, as Hermand and Hethumand, is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, in the south of the country. It is the largest province by area, covering area. The province contains 13 ...
province. In May 1993, a new attempt was made to reinstate the Islamabad Accord. In August, Massoud again extended a hand to Hekmatyar in an attempt to broaden the government. By the end of 1993, however, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and former communist general and militia leader,
Abdul Rashid Dostum Abdul Rashid Dostum ( ; prs, عبدالرشید دوستم; Uzbek Latin: , Uzbek Cyrillic: , ; born 25 March 1954) is an Afghan exiled politician, former Marshal in the Afghan National Army, founder and leader of the political party Junbish- ...
, were involved in secret negotiations encouraged by Pakistan's
Inter-Services Intelligence The Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI; ur, , bayn khadamatiy mukhabarati) is the premier intelligence agency of Pakistan. It is responsible for gathering, processing, and analyzing any information from around the world that is deemed relevant ...
, Iran's intelligence service and Uzbekistan's
Karimov Karimov or Carimoff is the Slavicised version of the name Karim. It is most popular in Central Asia, especially in Uzbekistan, although it is prevalent in the South Caucasus. Notable people with the surname include: * Ayrat Karimov (1971–2020), ...
administration. They planned a coup to oust the Rabbani administration and to attack Massoud in his northern areas. In January 1994, Hekmatyar and Dostum mounted a destructive bombardment campaign against the capital and attacked Massoud's core areas in the northeast. The attacks conducted by Hekmatyar and Dostum killed ten thousand civilians according to some estimates and 25,000 civilians according other estimates. Dostum's spokesperson (Uzbek) claimed Rabbani was running the country only in accord with Tajik interests. But
Amin Saikal Professor Amin Saikal (born in Kabul, Afghanistan), is Adjunct Professor of Social Sciences at the University of Western Australia, and a former University Distinguished Professor and Director of the Centre for Arab and Islamic Studies (The Mi ...
, Director of the Centre for Arab and Islamic Studies at the
Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public research university located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton encompasses seven teaching and research colleges, in addition to several national academies and ...
, writes Hekmatyar had the following objectives in all his operations including this attempted coup: ''"The first was to make sure that Rabbani and Massoud were not allowed to consolidate power, build a credible administration, or expand their territorial control, so that the country would remain divided into small fiefdoms, run by various Muajhideen leaders and local warlords or a council of such elements, with only some of them allied to Kabul. The second was to ensure the Rabbani government acquired no capacity to dispense patronage, and to dissuade the Kabul population from giving more than limited support to the government. The third was to make Kabul an unsafe city for representatives of the international community and to prevent the Rabbani government from attracting the international support needed to begin the post-war reconstruction of Afghanistan and generate a level of economic activity which would enhance its credibility and popularity."'' Gulbuddin Hekmatyar received extensive support by neighbouring Pakistan. By mid-1994, Hekmatyar and Dostum were on the defensive in Kabul against Islamic State forces led by Massoud. By early 1995, the Islamic State had been able to secure the capital. It began to restore some law and order, and to start basic public services. Massoud initiated a nationwide
political process Political opportunity theory, also known as the political process theory or political opportunity structure, is an approach of social movements that is heavily influenced by political sociology. It argues that success or failure of social movements ...
with the goal of national consolidation and
democratic election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operated ...
s. But the
Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...
, which had emerged over the course of 1994 in southern Afghanistan, were already at the doors of the capital city.


See also

*
Islamic State of Afghanistan The Islamic State of Afghanistan ( fa, , ''Dawlat-i Islāmī-yi Afghānistan'', ps, , ''Da Afghanistan Islami Dowlat'') was the government of Afghanistan, established by the Peshawar Accords on 26 April 1992 by many, but not all, Afgha ...


References

{{Reflist Islamabad Government of Benazir Bhutto Afghanistan–Pakistan relations Afghan Civil War (1992–1996)