Mullah Abdul Salam Hanafi is the senior-most ethnic Uzbek figure in the Taliban's leadership. During the 1990s, he served as the deputy education minister under the Taliban regime. Later, he oversaw Taliban activities in northern Jawzjan province until 2008, where he was also reportedly involved in narcotics trafficking. From 2019 to 2021, Hanafi was a key figure in the Taliban's negotiating team in Doha, Qatar, and served as the deputy head of the Taliban's political office in Qatar. He is sanctioned by the United States, the United Kingdom, as well as the United Nations under the designation TAi.027.
