Who is Sheikh Haibatullah Akhundzada, likely leader of the Taliban govt in Afghanistan?

Sheikh Haibatullah Akhundzada is the Taliban’s top spiritual leader. He took over as the Supreme Leader of the militant group after his predecessor, Akhtar Mansour was killed in a US drone strike in 2016.

Born and raised in the Panjwayi district of Afghanistan, just outside Kandahar., Akhundzada's family moved to Balochistan in Pakistan after the Soviet invasion. In the 1980s, he joined the fight against the Soviets.

Akhundzada went on to become the religious 'adviser' of Taliban founder Mullah Mohammed Omar, and gradually reached the status of 'sheikh ul-hadith' or outstanding religious scholar and mawlawi - two of the most senior religious titles.

He was also appointed as head of military courts in Kandahar and Nangarhar under the Taliban rule.

Akhundzada is associated with several Taliban fatwas, including the one which supports extreme punishments, such as public executions of convicted murderers and adulterers.

After the US-led coalition invaded Afghanistan in 2001 and overthrew the Taliban, he was named the head of the militant group’s council of religious scholars.

Akhundzada has kept a low profile until now. A New York Times report suggests he is expected to serve as the supreme leader, with a theocratic role, similar to that of Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Khomeini.

Taliban co-founder, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, is expected to be in charge of day-to-day affairs as head of the Taliban government.