Atta Muhammad Nur | |
|---|---|
 Nur in 2010 | |
| Governor of Balkh | |
| In office 2004 – January 25, 2018 | |
| Preceded by | Mustafa Omari |
| Succeeded by | Mohammad Ishaq Rahgozar[1] |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1964 (age 60–61) |
| Political party | Jamiat-e Islami |
| Relations | Islam[2] |
| Children | 7 |
| Profession | Politician, formerMujahideen leader |
| Ethnicity | Tajik |
Attā Muhammad Nur (also spelledAtā Mohammed Noor;Persian:عطا محمد نور; born 1964) is anAfghan exiled politician and former mujahideen leader who served as theGovernor ofBalkh Province in Afghanistan from 2004 to January 25, 2018.[1] An ethnicTajik,[3] he worked to educate theMujahideen after during theSoviet-Afghan War, gaining the nickname "The Teacher".[4] He then became a mujahideen resistance commander for theJamiat-e Islami against the Soviets.
When theTaliban government took power in late 1996, Noor served as a commander in theNorthern Alliance underAhmad Shāh Massoud against the Taliban and led operations in the Balkh area.[5] In 2004,PresidentHamid Karzai appointed him as the governor of Balkh province.[3] He has been described byThe Economist as being "immensely wealthy."[6] He was removed from the position of Provincial Governor by PresidentAshraf Ghani in January 2018.[7]
During the2021 Taliban offensive, Nur, along withAbdul Rashid Dostum, fledMazar-e-Sharif toUzbekistan in August 2021.[8]
Attā Muhammad Nur, was born in 1964 inMazar-e-Sharif city ofBalkh province.
Attā Muhammad Nur joined the mujahideen fighting theSoviet presence in Afghanistan in the 1980s[9] and became affiliated with theJamiat-e Islami party. By 1992, he had become one of the most powerful Mujahideen commanders in Northern Afghanistan.[10]
Following the fall ofMohammed Najibullah'sDemocratic Republic of Afghanistan, while remaining a Jamiat commander, he also joinedAbdul Rashid Dostum'sNational Islamic Movement of Afghanistan, becoming a deputy leader of that movement during its first congress on June 1, 1992.[11] However, ideological differences with Dostum soon emerged, and in 1993, he split from Dostum.[12] In January 1994, Atta Noor fought to consolidate theIslamic State of Afghanistan's control over the capital of Balkh,Mazar-i-Sharif, against Dostum's Junbish militia. But Dostum struck first, mobilizing 10,000 men and defeating Atta's forces.[13]
When the Taliban took power in late 1997, Attā Noor served as a commander in the anti-TalibanUnited Front (Northern Alliance) underAhmad Shāh Massoud. Attā Noor led operations in the Balkh area.[5] Dostum had turned into an ally against the Taliban. On November 9, 2001, Attā Noor's forces and those of Dostumdrove the Taliban from Mazar-i-Sharif.[14]
After the establishment of theIslamic Republic of Afghanistan under theHamid Karzai administration, Ustād Attā's forces clashed with those of Dostum several times. From 2002 onwards, with the support of Jamiat-e Islāmi allies occupying key positions in theAfghan Transitional Administration and the support of the international community which tried to marginalize Dostum for his dubious record, Attā Noor expanded his influence in Northern Afghanistan. He managed to seize Mazar-i-Sharif using little force, only theKhulmi District was taken by force. Attā subsequently attempted to buy the loyalty of local leaders inFaryab,Jowzjan, and Balkh provinces.[15] In October 2003, Dostum launched an offensive, and managed to retake many of the positions he had lost since 2002. Near Mazar, Dostum outmanoeuvred Attā's armoured forces, and captured all the key positions around the city.[16] The fighting initiated by Dostum around Mazar involved tanks and artillery, and resulted in the death of approximately 60 people.[17] Both Dostum and Atta were, however, coming under increasing pressure from the international community and the central government in Kabul to stop the fighting. Attā and Dostum worked out a power-sharing agreement in which Dostum conceded Mazar and most of Balkh province to Attā, who in turn renounced his intention of contesting Dostum's influence elsewhere in Northern Afghanistan.[18]
Noor has married once and has five sons and two daughters. His eldest son, Khālid Noor, graduated fromRoyal Military Academy Sandhurst of London in 2014. Tariq Noor is studyingPublic Administration at the American University in Dubai. His other children are Belal Noor, Suhaib Noor, and Seyar Noor.
In Late 2004, Attā was appointed governor of Balkh Province byHamid Karzai. By installing commanders with whom he had fought in the 1980s and 1990s in local government positions, thus turning them away from destabilizing activities, he created a loyal and disciplined local administration. As a result, he acquired amonopoly on violence, and achieved relative security and stability even in the most remote districts, at the cost ofauthoritarian methods. The security in Balkh Province permitted significant reconstruction and the development of considerable economic activity.[9] Attā Noor is credited for maintaining political control and economic development and security for Balkh province including its largest city, Mazar-i-Sharif. Attā'sopium poppy eradication program between 2005 and 2007, advised by consultants fromAdam Smith International, successfully reduced poppy cultivation in Balkh Province from 7,200 hectares in 2005 to zero by 2007.[9]
Governor Attā Mohammad Noor supported Karzai's main challenger,Abdullah Abdullah, in theAugust 2009 presidential election.[19]
Attā Mohammad Noor, was widely recognized as the main source of political power in the Province, and had exercised a high degree of control over politics in Balkh. He has used that influence to grow rich through business deals during his time in power.[20] No meaningful business in the Province was Transacted without his approval and major real estate in the provincial capital,Mazar-e Sharif, was in the hands of companies Attā owns or controls. He is a key player in the transport industry in Afghanistan's north, including the development of the rail line from Uzbekistan to Mazar-e Sharif. Having transplanted his militia leaders into powerful positions throughout the provincial administration, he maintains a monopoly over violence as well as control over illicit activity.[21] Attā exercises near-complete control over the security organizations and political operations of the Province.
Nationally, the Province's administration was well regarded.[according to whom?] Consequently, it received additional funding and positions through the civil service priority restructuring program and some payments from the Ministry of Counter-Narcotics through the U.S.-funded Good Performance Initiative.[22] Historically, his local political strategy has been to dominate the Province using informal power, rules, and networks. His reputation as a strongman who doesn't tolerate opposition in any form has made him very influential in the area. While his power base does not lend itself to a rule based democracy, given Afghanistan's history of weak central power and its limited resources, the form of governance represented by Attā may be the best compromise at present in Afghanistan.[according to whom?]
Opponents of Atta view him as a corrupt power figure whose loyalty from the populace is motivated more by fear than adoration. The President appoints the country's 34 governors, but many believed that President Karzai was too weak to remove Governor Atta. Karzai's opposition raised concerns of violence and rebellion from the populace if the central government were to attempt to reign in Atta's power. Governor Attā Mohammad Noor himself boldly asserts that he will decide whether he remains governor of Balkh Province, not Kabul.[4] Indeed, in 2014 the current Afghan president,Ashraf Ghani, fired all 34 Afghan provincial governors, but Atta repeatedly refused to give up the role.[23] He was removed from the position of Provincial Governor by President Ashraf Ghani in January 2018.[7]
Although largely supported by the U.S., Atta has publicly spoken out against the U.S. exit strategy from Afghanistan. Attā is vehemently opposed to bringing the Taliban back into negotiations and opposes reconciliation with his former archenemies. Additionally, Attā does not support any permanent American bases in Afghanistan, and reiterates his regional loyalty. Speculation exists that Attā's colorful rhetoric may be linked to the possibility of him running for president, or at the least seeking the leadership of his local political party.[24]
He and Dostum fled across theAmu Darya when the Taliban advanced on toMazar-i-Sharif on August 14, 2021.[8] In October 2021, Ata, Dostum, and others includingYunus Qanuni andAbdul Rasul Sayyaf formed theSupreme Council of National Resistance of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan in opposition to the new Taliban regime.[25]
| Preceded by Mohammad Eshaq Rahgozar | Governor of Balkh 2004–2018 | Succeeded by Mohammad Ishaq Rahguzar |