[4] Prior to the war, Gailani invested more time in his business career than in the leadership of his Sufi tariqah, often travelling to France and England.

[5] In 1979, after the communist PDPA had come to power, Pir Gailani fled to Pakistan where he created the National Islamic Front of Afghanistan, a moderate royalist faction.

[6] Gailani's constituency was drawn from the following of the Qadiryyah, and his group functioned like a Sufi order, greatly hampering its efficiency as a political and military organisation.

Also the pir's tradition of generosity led to many abuses, with many party officials receiving essentially fictitious posts through personal contacts.

Outside of the ISI, Gailani had few links with foreign patrons (unlike the Islamists who had ties in the Arab world), but he did receive some support from American conservative lobbying groups such as the Committee for a Free Afghanistan, an emanation of the Heritage Foundation, and Freedom House.

In October 2001, Pir Ahmed Gailani headed a group of Afghan leaders, the Assembly for Peace and National Unity of Afghanistan, which attempted to win over moderate elements in the Taliban.