Pir Sayyid Ahmed Gailani (born 1932), is the leader (Pir) of the Qadiriyyah Sufi order in Afghanistan, and the founder of the National Islamic Front of Afghanistan (Mahaz-i-Milli Islami ye Afghanistan), a party that was associated with the Mujahideen who led the war against the Soviet Union in the 1980s.
Sayyid Ahmed Gailani's family are descended from Abdul-Qadir Gilani, the founder of the Qadiriyyah, and can trace their lineage to the islamic prophet Muhammad.
His father, Sayyid Hasan Gailani, was born in Baghdad before moving to Afghanistan in 1905 in order to establish the Qadiriyyah order in that country.
National Islamic Front
The National Islamic Front of Afghanistan or NIFA (Mahaz-i Milli-yi Islami-yi Afghanistan) is an Afghan party led by Sufi leader Pir Sayed Ahmed Gailani.
It is primarily (but not exclusively) a Pashtun party.
Followers of the Sufi holy man Pir Sayed Ahmed Gailani have a reputation for moderate thought and the traditional mystical and introspective religious currents that characterize Sufism in that sect.
During the 90s it was a minor party within the Northern Alliance.
Some notable members are Abdul Rahim Wardak (current Defense Minister of Afghanistan).
Rahmatullah Safi (1948), former Afghan army officer and mujahideen commander who fought suring the Soviet war in Afghanistan. He was later claimed to have been the representative of the Taliban movement in Europe.
