Sheikh Nida Mohammad Nadeem is a seasoned Taliban commander and a religious hardliner who assumed the position of Minister of Higher Education on October 16, 2022. Before this appointment, he held the role of Governor of Kabul province from February to October 2022 and served as the Provincial Chief of Police in Nangarhar province from October 2021 to February 2022. His extensive background includes serving in key roles such as the head of the Invitation and Guidance Commission (2012-2013), regional military commander for the northwestern zone based in Faryab province (2013-2016), deputy intelligence chief for administrative affairs (2016-2020), and shadow governor in Nangarhar province (2020). He also served as a member of the Taliban’s Military Commission in Kandahar and in Peshawar, Pakistan. Born in December 1978 to Haji Juma Khan, Sheikh Nida Mohammad Nadeem is a trusted associate of the Taliban's emir and reportedly maintains longstanding connections with al-Qaeda and other foreign jihadists. Presently, he also manages a madrassa in Kandahar, which he established in 2015. Nida Mohammad Nadeem is among the Taliban leaders sanctioned by the European Union due to his involvement in human rights violations.
