Abdul Ali Deobandi
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Abdul Ali Deobandi | |
|---|---|
عبد العلي دیوبندي | |
| Personal life | |
| Born | 1938 Lakukhil, Singesar, Kingdom of Afghanistan |
| Died | 2 November 2009 (aged 70–71) |
| Alma mater | Darul Uloom Haqqania or Darul Uloom Deoband |
| Occupation | |
| Religious life | |
| Religion | Sunni Islam |
| Movement | Deobandi |
Abdul Ali Deobandi (Pashto/Dari: عبد العلي دیوبندي; 1938 – 2 November 2009) was a pro-Taliban Afghan cleric who served as Mullah Omar's advisor. He earned the title of Sheikh al-Hadith and Mufassir.[1]
Abdul Ali was born in Lakukhil in 1938 to Mawlana Sher Muhammad, a cleric. He received basic religious education from his father. Later, he went to Kandahar to pursue higher education at Muhammadiyah School. Subsequently, he studied sharia at Darul Uloom Haqqania in Akora Khattak in 1964.[1] However, other sources mentioned that he enrolled at Darul Uloom Deoband.[2][3]
Upon finishing his Sharia studies, Abdul Ali went back to Afghanistan and taught Islam in several areas in Kandahar.[1] After the Saur Revolution, Abdul Ali called for jihad against the communist government. He then fled to Pakistan and continued teaching to mujahideen. He only returned to Afghanistan after the fall of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan. As he returned, he resumed teaching and became a mediator among warring factions in his area.[1][4] During the first Taliban government, Abdul Ali taught hadith in Kandahar and worked as a radio host on Voice of Sharia, answering Islamic questions about worship, beliefs, transactions, politics, Islamic economics, and personal status.[1] Other than that, he also served as Mullah Omar's ideology advisor, albeit he did not hold any position in the government.[2] Abdul Ali was believed to have fled to Pakistan in 2001.[2] In early 2006, he was reportedly living in Quetta.[5] He died on 2 November 2009 from natural causes.[1][2]