Since the United States-led coalition invaded Afghanistan in 2001, Hizb-I Islami Gulbuddin (HIG) has led terrorist attacks against the United States, its coalition partners, and the Afghan Transitional Administration (ATA). In addition to attacking coalition forces and Afghan government targets, HIG has attacked the personnel and facilities of the United Nations and NGOs as well. The group is considered to be an active threat.

Hizb-I Islami Gulbuddin (HIG) -- Splinter Group

The Hizb-I-Islami (Islamic Party) of Afghanistan was formed by Gulbuddin Hikmatyar in the mid-1970s. Originally the party acted as an Islamist insurgency against the Daud regime in Kabul. After the Soviet invasion the group was heavily involved in anti-Soviet attacks funded through the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and the United States. In the factional fighting that emerged after the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan, the Islamic Party forged a number of non-durable political alliances, first with officials in the Najibullah regime and later with Uzbek warlord Dostam. After repeated attacks on Kabul and the regime of Rabbani Hikmatyar, the Islamic Party finally entered into the Afghan government in 1996, only to be driven from power shortly thereafter with the rise of the Taliban.

The Hizb-I-Islami split in the late 1970s, with Maluvi Mohammad Yunus Khalis's faction breaking away from the dominant group led by Hikmaytar.  Recent reports suggest that the fragmentation of the Islamic Party has continued, with a group led by Khalid Farooqi proclaiming to support the transitional regime of Hamid Karzai and end their struggle against the Afghan government and coalition troops.  Farooqi has claimed that his faction of the group has cut off all contact with Hikmatyar, who remains at large.  The precise balance of power within the Hizb-I-Islami is unknown.<p><br /><br />In July 2007, after losing many of the group's top commanders to surrender, Hikmaytar announced that the group would begin a unilateral ceasefire. It remains to be seen what effect, if any, this announcement has on the insurgency in Afghanistan.