A CNN show claims former president Donald Trump made up the name of a Taliban leader.

President Mime’s country is beautiful this time of year. pic.twitter.com/wxpRHf338B

— Have I Got News For You US (@hignfyus) September 16, 2024

Verdict: Misleading

The name is not fake. Trump spoke with a Taliban leader named Abdul Ghani Baradar in early 2020, who is a current senior government official of the Taliban government. Trump is wrong that Baradar is the leader of the Taliban, who is Hibatullah Akhundzada.

Fact Check:

Comedians on the CNN show ‘Have I Got News For You’ claimed that Trump had a fake name for a Taliban leader. The video on CNN reads, “Comedians react to former President Donald Trump’s use of a fake name of a Taliban leader during the ABC News presidential debate.”

“He picked the most obvious name to make up for the head of the Taliban. Abdul,” one of the panelists said in the clip.

This claim is misleading. Trump is incorrect when he says that the name of the leader of the Taliban is Hibatullah Akhundzada, according to Wikipedia. However, it is misleading to state that Trump gave a fake name of a Taliban leader. 

The name Trump gave describes an actual Taliban leader by the name of Abdul Ghani Baradar. Trump spoke with Baradar in 2020, according to ABC News. Baradar served as the Taliban’s chief negotiator when the U.S. was negotiating with the Taliban about withdrawing from Afghanistan.

Trump said at the time that his relationship with Baradar was “very good … we had a good, long conversation today, and, you know, they want to cease the violence. They’d like to cease violence also,” according to ABC News.

Baradar is currently a deputy minister in the government, according to Britannica. Time Magazine named him as one of the Top 100 influential people of 2021. (RELATED: Beijing Claims’ Volt Typhoon’ Is A US Disinformation Campaign)

“He was said to be making all the major decisions, including the amnesty offered to members of the former regime, the lack of bloodshed when the Taliban entered Kabul and the regime’s contacts and visits with neighboring states, especially China and Pakistan,” Time reported.

Check Your Fact reached out to the Trump campaign and CNN for comment.