Mohammad Fahim facts for kids

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Quick facts for kids Mohammad Fahim
محمد فهیم
Fahim in 2004

First Vice President of Afghanistan
In office 19 November 2009 – 9 March 2014
President	Hamid Karzai
Preceded by	Ahmad Zia Massoud
Succeeded by	Yunus Qanuni
Minister of Defence
In office 19 September 2001 – 23 December 2004
President	Burhanuddin Rabbani Hamid Karzai
Preceded by	Ahmad Shah Massoud
Succeeded by	Abdurrahim Wardak
Directors of KHAD
In office April 1992 – April 1996
President	Sibghatullah Mojaddedi Burhanuddin Rabbani
Preceded by	Osman Sultani
Succeeded by	Position abolished

Personal details
Born	1957 Omarz, Panjshir, Afghanistan
Died	9 March 2014 (aged 56 or 57) Kabul, Afghanistan
Children	12 (Adib Fahim)
Military service
Allegiance	Afghanistan
Branch/service	Afghanistan National Army
Years of service	1978–2002
Rank	Marshal
Commands	Northern Alliance State Security Agency
Battles/wars	Soviet–Afghan War War in Afghanistan (1996–2001) War against the Taliban Fall of Kabul (2001)

Mohammad Qasim Fahim (Dari: محمد فهیم), also known as "Marshal Fahim," was an important military leader and politician in Afghanistan. He was born in 1957 and passed away on March 9, 2014. He served as the Vice President of Afghanistan two times: first from 2002 to 2004, and then again from 2009 until his death.

Fahim was a close friend of Ahmad Shah Massoud, another famous Afghan leader. As a military commander of the Northern Alliance, Fahim helped capture the capital city, Kabul, from the Taliban in 2001. From 2001 to 2004, he was the Defense Minister. In 2004, President Hamid Karzai gave him the special title of Marshal, which is a very high military rank. He was a powerful person in the Afghan government.

Early Life and Beginnings
Political and Military Roles
Second Term as Vice President
Attacks on His Life
Peace Efforts
Later Life and Death
Images for kids
See also

Early Life and Beginnings

Mohammad Fahim was born in a small village called Omarz in the Panjshir Province of Afghanistan. He was from the Tajik ethnic group. He studied Islamic law in Kabul until 1977.

Reports say he started fighting against the Communist rulers in Afghanistan in the late 1970s. When the Communist government took over in 1978, he left Afghanistan and became a refugee. He later returned to Panjshir and worked with Commander Ahmad Shah Masood, a well-known resistance leader.

Political and Military Roles

When the Soviet-backed government in Afghanistan fell in 1992, Fahim became a key figure in the new government. He was put in charge of Afghanistan's intelligence service, KHAD. He continued this role under President Burhanuddin Rabbani.

In 1996, when the Taliban forces were taking over Kabul, Fahim offered to help the former President Mohammad Najibullah escape. However, Najibullah refused and was captured and killed by the Taliban. Fahim continued to be a military commander for the United Islamic Front (also known as the Northern Alliance) in northern Afghanistan, even after the Taliban took control of most of the country.

Becoming Defense Minister

On September 9, 2001, Ahmad Shah Massoud, who was Afghanistan's main resistance leader and Defense Minister, was killed. Just two days later, Fahim was chosen to take his place as the new Defense Minister for the Northern Alliance. He had been a close supporter of Massoud.

After the September 11 attacks in the United States, the US began to act against the Taliban. Fahim became a main partner for the US in the fight against the Taliban. He was eager to start a military attack. He even said he would attack the Taliban without waiting for the US. On October 7, 2001, when the US started bombing Taliban targets, Fahim announced an attack on the northern and western fronts.

On October 20, a team of US Green Berets arrived in Afghanistan and joined Fahim's forces. They planned to attack Mazar-e-Sharif, a city Fahim wanted to capture first. Mazar-e-Sharif was taken by opposition forces in November. A few days later, the Taliban left Kabul. Fahim entered Kabul with his security team, but he kept most of his troops outside the city.

By the end of November, Fahim's forces also captured Kunduz. This meant Fahim controlled two of Afghanistan's five largest cities.

Forming a New Government

After Kabul fell, a military council led by Fahim was set up to manage the parts of the country that had been captured. During this time, an international meeting was held in Bonn, Germany, in December 2001. This meeting was to decide on Afghanistan's future leaders.

Fahim played a big role in these talks, along with other Tajik leaders from the United Islamic Front, Yunus Qanuni and Dr. Abdullah. These three leaders were effectively leading the United Islamic Front after Massoud's death. Fahim reportedly supported Hamid Karzai to become the next Afghan president.

The Bonn conference chose Hamid Karzai as the Interim President. Fahim, Abdullah, and Qanuni all received important positions in the new government. As the commander of Afghanistan's largest military force, Fahim was appointed Defense Minister. He was also one of the five Vice-Chairs of the Interim Administration.

Working with the Interim Government

In the new government, Karzai needed Fahim's support. Even though Karzai was the official leader, Fahim had real power because his forces controlled the capital.

Fahim wanted a limited number of foreign troops in Afghanistan. He was worried that a large international peacekeeping force might reduce his power. Karzai, however, was less concerned about foreign involvement.

After the government officially started on December 22, 2001, Fahim asked international forces to leave Kabul. He said he would not accept foreign troops in Afghanistan without a UN agreement. He also demanded that British soldiers leave Bagram Air Base. Fahim believed his own forces could keep Kabul safe.

Eventually, it was decided that a few thousand international security troops would be sent. They would not take full control of Kabul and would not immediately disarm Afghan militias. A main task for the foreign troops would be to train the Afghan army. Fahim wanted to build an Afghan army of about 250,000 soldiers.

When the first foreign peacekeeping troops arrived, Fahim said they were not needed for security. He insisted their presence was symbolic and they should not use force. He also said that Northern Alliance soldiers would be pulled from the streets but would stay in Kabul.

First Term as Vice President

During the 2002 loya jirga (a large assembly), a new temporary government was formed. Fahim supported Karzai for president. In return, Fahim remained Vice President and Defense Minister.

As Defense Minister, he visited military bases in the United Kingdom, met with US and Canadian defense leaders, and traveled to Moscow and Washington, D.C. He also replaced some Tajik generals with officers from other ethnic groups like Pashtun, Uzbek, and Hazara.

In 2003, Fahim ordered some of his militia to hand over their weapons to the Afghan National Army.

In 2004, Karzai chose Ahmad Zia Massoud as his vice-presidential candidate for the upcoming election, not Fahim. Fahim then supported Yunus Qanuni for president. After Karzai won, Fahim was not reappointed as Defense Minister. He was replaced by Abdul Rahim Wardak.

Even though he lost his formal government role, Fahim remained a powerful person in Afghanistan. In 2006, Karzai brought him back as an advisor. Many people in the north of Afghanistan respected Fahim because he had fought against the Soviet Union, and later the Taliban and Al-Qaeda.

Second Term as Vice President

In 2009, President Hamid Karzai chose Fahim to be his candidate for First Vice President in the 2009 Afghan presidential election. Fahim was known as a strong leader. Karzai's choice helped him get votes from the Tajik minority, which is the second largest ethnic group in Afghanistan after Karzai's own Pashtun community.

Karzai won the election, and Fahim served as Vice President again starting November 19, 2009.

Attacks on His Life

Mohammad Fahim survived several attempts to kill him.

In April 2002, a mine exploded under a car in his convoy while he was visiting Jalalabad.
Later in 2002, a man with explosives was arrested, planning to attack Fahim.
In June 2003, a bomb was found near his home. Later that year, the head of his personal security was killed by a bomber.
On July 26, 2009, his convoy was attacked by the Taliban in Kunduz province using rifles and rocket-propelled grenades. He survived this attack as well.

Peace Efforts

In March 2010, during the New Year's Day celebrations in Mazar-i-Sharif, Fahim spoke about peace. He invited militants to a national conference to help end the Taliban insurgency. He promised that the Afghan government would try to find a peaceful life for those who were unhappy, referring to the militants. The Peace Jirga (assembly) took place in Kabul in June 2010.

Later Life and Death

In his final years, Fahim had health problems and received treatment in Germany. He passed away from a heart attack on March 9, 2014.

President Karzai said Fahim's death was "a huge loss for Afghanistan." The Afghan government declared three days of national mourning. The United Nations called him "a good and trusted partner."

The Prime Minister of India praised Fahim's role in building good relations between India and Afghanistan. The US Ambassador called him "a leader during the Jihad" who helped Afghanistan move towards peace.

After his death, the Afghan National Defense University was renamed Marshal Fahim National Defense University (MFNDU) in his honor. His life and contributions are remembered every year on March 9 in Afghanistan.

Images for kids

Marshal Fahim (center) standing next to former Afghan President Burhanuddin Rabbani and former Russian President Vladimir Putin in October 2001.
Marshal Fahim greeting former U.S. President George W. Bush in 2006. Others to the side are Afghan President Hamid Karzai and 2nd Vice Afghan President Karim Khalili with the turban.
U.S. President Barack Obama meets with Hamid Karzai and Marshal Fahim at the Presidential Palace in Kabul, Afghanistan, in 2010.