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Ashraf Ghani

Ashraf Ghani
اشرف غني
Ghani in 2018
5th President of Afghanistan
In office
29 September 2014 – 15 August 2021
Vice PresidentFirst VP:
Second VP:
Chief ExecutiveAbdullah Abdullah (2014–2020)
Preceded byHamid Karzai
Succeeded byHibatullah Akhundzada (as Supreme Leader)
Chancellor of Kabul University
In office
22 December 2004 – 21 December 2008
Preceded byHabibullah Habib
Succeeded byHamidullah Amin
Minister of Finance
In office
2 June 2002 – 14 December 2004
PresidentHamid Karzai
Preceded byHedayat Amin Arsala
Succeeded byAnwar ul-Haq Ahady
Personal details
Born (1949-05-19) 19 May 1949 (age 75)
Logar, Kingdom of Afghanistan
CitizenshipAfghanistan[1]
United States (until 2009)
Political partyIndependent
Spouse
​
(m. 1975)​
Children2, including Mariam Ghani
RelativesHashmat Ghani Ahmadzai (brother)
EducationAmerican University of Beirut (BA)
Columbia University (MA, PhD)
Ashraf Ghani's voice
Ghani discussing security assistance from the United States
Recorded 24 March 2015

Mohammad Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai[a] (born 19 May 1949) is an Afghan former politician, academic, and economist who served as the president of Afghanistan from September 2014 until August 2021, when his government was overthrown by the Taliban.

Ghani was born in Logar, Afghanistan. After his grade-school education in Afghanistan, he spent much of his time abroad, studying in Lebanon and the United States. After receiving his PhD in cultural anthropology from Columbia University in 1983, he taught at various institutions and was an associate professor of anthropology at Johns Hopkins University.[2] For much of the 1990s, he worked at the World Bank. In December 2001, he returned to Afghanistan after the collapse of the Taliban government. He then served as finance minister in Hamid Karzai's cabinet. He resigned in December 2004 to become the dean of Kabul University. In 2009, Ghani ran in the 2009 Afghan presidential election but came in fourth.[3]

In 2014, Ghani became president after winning the controversial 2014 Afghan presidential election. The election was so disputed that negotiations between Ghani and rival Abdullah Abdullah were mediated by the United States. Ghani became president and Abdullah chief executive, with power split 50-50.[4][5] On 18 February 2020, Ghani was re-elected after a delayed result from the 2019 presidential elections.[6][7] He was sworn in on 9 March 2020.[8] As president, Ghani was known for his intensity and energetic speeches.[9] He aimed to transform Afghanistan into a technocratic state, winning him support from youth and urban demographics.[10] His cabinets were relatively young and well-educated. Ghani made efforts to make peace with Taliban insurgents[11] and improving relations with Pakistan.[12] However many of his promises, such as fighting corruption and turning the country into a trade hub between central and south Asia, were left unfulfilled.[10] His position was also weakened by political rivalries,[10] his attempt to lessen the power of ex-warlords,[13] and an uneasy relationship with the United States regarding the war.[11] He was also criticized for being aloof and short-tempered, including being in denial during the Taliban's offensive in 2021.[10][14][15]

On 15 August 2021, his term ended abruptly, as the Taliban took over Kabul. Ghani and staff fled Afghanistan and took refuge in the United Arab Emirates.[16][17] He later stated he left in order to avoid further violence, and that staying and dying would have accomplished nothing but adding another tragedy to Afghanistan's history.[18][19]

However, he was also condemned across various spectrums for abandoning Afghanistan to the Taliban and has been alleged of corruption during his administration.[20]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference aspistrategist.org.au was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "Ashraf Ghani | C-SPAN.org". www.c-span.org. Retrieved 19 February 2023.
  3. ^ "A New Turn in the Taliban's War: Hazarajat Under Siege".
  4. ^ Akhgar, Tameem; Gannon, Kathy (28 September 2019). "Top 5 Afghan presidential candidates in Saturday's election". AP News.
  5. ^ Welle (www.dw.com), Deutsche. "Understanding Afghanistan's Chief Executive Officer | DW | 30 September 2014". DW.COM. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
  6. ^ Mashal, Mujib (18 February 2020). "After 5-Month Delay, Ashraf Ghani Is Named Winner of Afghan Election". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
  7. ^ "Ghani named winner of disputed Afghan poll, rival also claims victory". Reuters. 19 February 2020. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
  8. ^ "Amid Controversy, Ghani Takes Oath of Office". TOLOnews. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
  9. ^ "The rise and fall of Afghan President Ashraf Ghani". France 24. 15 August 2021. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  10. ^ a b c d Constable, Pamela (15 August 2021). "Afghan president sought modern reforms, forced out by insurgents". Washington Post. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  11. ^ a b "Afghan president Ashraf Ghani: intellectual who had no answer to the Taliban". the Guardian. Reuters. 16 August 2021. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  12. ^ Graham-Harrison, Emma (13 August 2015). "Afghan president in last-ditch attempt to repair ties with Pakistan". the Guardian. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  13. ^ DesMarais, Scott (9 March 2018). "Afghanistan's Powerbrokers Prepare for 2019 Presidential Elections". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  14. ^ Bezhan, Frud (16 August 2021). "Ashraf Ghani: The Deeply Polarizing President Who Oversaw The Fall Of Afghanistan". RFE/RL. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  15. ^ "The Governing Style Of Ashraf Ghani, The Departing Afghan President". NPR.org. 15 August 2021. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  16. ^ Graham, Natasha Turak, Emma (18 August 2021). "Afghan President Ashraf Ghani resurfaces in UAE after fleeing Afghanistan, Emirati government says". CNBC. Retrieved 18 August 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  17. ^ "UAE says Afghanistan's Ghani is in Gulf Arab state". Reuters. 18 August 2021. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  18. ^ "Afghanistan's former President Ashraf Ghani on the U.S. withdrawal and Taliban takeover". PBS NewsHour. 25 August 2022. Retrieved 19 February 2023.
  19. ^ "Ashraf Ghani: 'I apologise that I could not make it end differently'". BBC News. 9 September 2021. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  20. ^ Sandra Petersmann (27 August 2021). "Afghan activist: 'Ashraf Ghani is a national traitor'". Deutsche Welle. Retrieved 4 June 2024.


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