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The presidential candidates in Afghanistan have until the end of the day of January 20 to register their candidacy for the vote of July 20, a vote postponed by three months compared to the initial calendar. Nine candidates have already registered. Saturday, January 19, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar announced that he was embarking on the race. The former warlord is a very controversial figure in Afghanistan, a man with a shadowy past.
With our correspondent in Kabul, Sonia Ghezali
A white beard, a black turban, rectangular glasses on the nose. The face of Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, although aged, continues to thrill more than one in the streets of the Afghan capital.
The man has been dubbed the "butcher of Kabul" or "rocketyar", in reference to the many rockets fired by his men during the siege of Kabul in 1992 causing thousands of victims.
Accused of war crimes, he had been blacklisted by terrorists wanted by the United States. The Hezb e-Islami he leads is also accused of having ambushed the Taliban, which cost the lives of 10 French soldiers on August 18, 2008 in the Uzbin Valley.
Two years ago, a large convoy of militants from Hezb e-Islami returned to Kabul, triumphant, weapons brandished in victory at the head of the convoy Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, reinstated in the Afghan political life after sealing an agreement of peace with President Ashraf Ghani.
The leader of Hezb e-Islami is far from unanimous even in his own ranks. The man has increased criticism of the Afghan government, particularly for its mismanagement of the legislative elections of October 2018.