Al-Afdal was one of the Ayyubid commanders at the Battle of Arsuf, when Saladin was defeated by Richard I of England and the forces of the Third Crusade.
Al-Afdal was in theory the head of the Ayyubid dynasty, but he was not able to exert any level of authority over his siblings, and soon proved that he had little ability as a ruler.
The arrival of al-Khamil, al-Adil's son, at Damascus with reinforcements and continuing quarrels led to the ending of the siege in December 1199.
Fleeing to Cairo, al-Afdal sued for peace on any terms he could get from al-Adil; stripped of Egypt, he was promised the cities of Samosata and Mayyafaraqin.
Az-Zahir admitted his uncle's suzerainty in the Spring of 1202, and al-Adil had succeeded in exerting his authority over all the Ayyubid dominions.
True to form, after taking two towns he soon quarrelled with his ally and took no further part in the fighting, Kaykaus being subsequently defeated.