Government of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan
The government of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, referred to by the Taliban Islamic Movement as the Islamic Emirate, is the governing authority and system of Afghanistan. After the Afghan Civil War in 1996 until its overthrow in the US invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, the system of the Islamic Emirate governed a majority of Afghanistan. The governing structure of the Islamic Emirate was maintained throughout the ensuing Taliban insurgency, but did not govern the country. After the Fall of Kabul on August 15, 2021, the Islamic Emirate again became the "de facto  governing system of Afghanistan. The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is temporarily governed under the Constitution of Afghanistan from 1964, amended to be compliant with Sharia law. However, the provisional constitution is currently unenforced to date. On September 23, 2021, the Taliban Islamic Movement announced a constitutional commission will be formed in 2022 to draft a permanent constitution. Others believe that a constitution drafted by the Ulema-e-Jaid in 1998 under Mohammed Omar is currently being enforced. Political power is vested with the Leader and Leadership Council of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, collectively referred to as the Leadership of 	Government of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan
9995133	the Islamic Emirate. Final approval concerning religious, public, military policy, and appointments, is made by the Leader in consultation with the Leadership Council. As a result, the Leadership Council appoints and oversees the work of the Cabinet, the general staff of the Islamic Emirate Army, Supreme Court, provincial governors, and municipal leaders. Leadership of the Islamic Emirate. The de facto" decision-making body of Afghanistan is officially called the Leadership of the Islamic Emirate, consisting of the Leader and Leadership Council. Both entities are based out of Kandahar. Leader. Officially known as the leader of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan , the position is the "de facto" head of state and supreme leader of Afghanistan. Currently, the Leadership Council appoints a new leader upon the death, or resignation of the former leader. Historically, the first deputy leader of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has always chosen as successor. There is no fixed term limit for the position, with the incumbent always holding office for life. In the current political setup the Leader exercises final approval on major appointments and decisions made by the Islamic Emirate. The Leader makes all senior legislative, executive, judicial, provincial and municipal appointments and/or dismissals for the  Islamic Emirate. These institutions include the members and commission heads of the Leadership Council, Cabinet, Supreme Court, and Islamic Emirate Army, provinces, and municipalities. The Leader also directly appoints the Minister of Defence, Minister of Interior Affairs, and Minister of Foreign Affairs. Outside of appointments, and in conjunction with the Leadership Council, the Leader officially exercises oversight of the work of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. The Leader may also issue decrees and/or special instructions through the Leadership Office directing the work of the judiciary, cabinet, and provincial governors. Leadership Council. Officially called the Leadership Council of the Islamic Emirate  of Afghanistan and also known by its Pashto name Rahbari Shura, the Leadership Council is a consultative body to the Leader and deliberative body of the Islamic Emirate. In reality it functions as the de facto executive branch of the Islamic Emirate. Its members are appointed by the Leader who in turn choose their successor. The Leadership Council is made up of 30 members, 18 of them being heads of the various commissions and departments making up the council. In reality, the Leadership Council exercises de facto political power over Afghanistan instead of the Cabinet as 30 of the 33  members make up the Cabinet. Because of this, most decisions made by the cabinet are really made in direct consultation and approval with the Leader and Leadership Council. The following bodies make up the Leadership Council: Executive. The Cabinet is the de jure executive branch of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. Ministers making up the Cabinet are presided over by the Prime Minister with assistance of the First, Second, and Third Deputy Prime Ministers. Prime Minister. The position is officially known as the Prime Minister of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, which presides over the Cabinet and is supposed to  act as the head of government. Currently the Leader formally appoints and/or dismisses the prime minister and cabinet on independently or on recommendation from the Leadership Council. In reality the Prime Minister mainly presides over meetings of the Cabinet and oversees the functioning of the civil service. Cabinet. The Caretaker Cabinet of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is the de jure executive body of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. In practice the ministries under the cabinet carry out the decisions of a respective commission or department within the Leadership Council. The minister in charge in most cases is also the  head of that commission. Independent decisions made by the Prime Minister and cabinet pertain primarily to the operation of the civil service. Judiciary. The judiciary of Afghanistan, officially called the Judiciary of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, currently consists of the Supreme Court, appeals courts, civil courts and city courts. All justices of the appeals, civil and city courts are presided over by Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. The judicial system is heavily criticized by legal and human rights for the complete lack of due process, extreme punishments, and lack of legal representation for defendants. However others argue that  due to government corruption, the Taliban's judicial system is more quicker and effective at dispensing justice. Because of this, Talibani courts were often sought out by locals in rural areas to resolve cases. Supreme Court. The Supreme Court of the Islamic Emirate, or Supreme Court of Afghanistan, is the final court of appeal in Afghanistan. Abdul Hakim Ishaqzai, who is Minister of Justice, currently presides over the court as Chief Justice. Beneath him are two deputy justices; Mohammad Qasim Rasikh and Sheikh Abdul Malik. Court of Appeals. The Court of Appeals are the court of second instance at the  provincial level. Each court is currently presided over by a chief Justice appointed by the Supreme Court. Civil Courts. Civil Courts operate at the provincial level in seven provinces of Afghanistan as a civil court of first instance, operating on the same level of the provincial Court of Appeals. As its name implies civil cases currently are handled at this level in their respective province. Each civil court is currently presided over by a chief justice appointed by the Supreme Court. Provinces that currently have civil courts as of 2021 are Baghlan, Samangan, Faryab, Sar-I-Pul, Kunar, Maidan Wardak , and Nuristan. City and Municipal Courts. City Courts function as the court of first instance at the municipal level across Afghanistan. Each court is currently presided over by a chief justice appointed by the Supreme Court. Administrative divisions. Provinces. The provinces are headed by governors who are appointed by the Leader in consultation with the Leadership Council. The Governor in turn oversees the governing of the province through various departments to handle different aspects of governance, which are parallel to the ministries that make up the Cabinet on the national level. The provincial governor presided over several district governors who  were also appointed by the Leadership of the Islamic Emirate. Districts. As with the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, provinces are composed of several districts presided over by a governor. As with the provincial governor, the district's governor oversees their area's respective civil service. Security forces. Internal and external security of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan are the responsibility of the Ministry of Interior Affairs and Ministry of Defence respectively. The heads of these two respective ministries are Mohammed Yaqoob, head of the Military Affairs Commission within the Rahbari Shura and son of Mullah Omar, and Sirajuddin Haqqani, head  of the Haqqani Network. Currently the Islamic Emirate Army is subdivided into eight corps, mostly superseding the previous corps of the Afghan National Army. In November 2021 Mullah Yaqoob, Acting Minister of Defense, announced the new names and of the corps.