[1] He was the youngest son of Mohammad Yaqub Khan,[2] an ex-monarch of Afghanistan who was forced into exile to the British Raj in 1879,[3] and his mother, a Herati consort,[4] was a slave of his father.
[7] Crowds arrived in Nawakot to pay him homage, and a proclamation was created in Persian which declared Abd-al Karim to be the new Emir, which was stamped with the thumbprints of men from various different tribes.
[3] In his memoir, Habibullāh Kalakāni, who fought as a soldier of Amanullah during the rebellion, states that Abd-al Karim failed to be an inspiration to the rebel forces.
He writes that "He hoped that the name which he bore and the memory of his grandfather would cause the country to turn to him and to proclaim him as deliverer against one who sought to impose unpopular reforms.
[6] According to the account of Rhea Talley steward, Abd-al Karim committed suicide on 18 February, after repeatedly expressing fear of being assassinated by an Afghan agent.