Yaqub Salimov (Tajik: Яъқуб Салимов, Persian: یعقوب سلیموف, Russian: Якуб Салимов) served as Minister of the Interior of Tajikistan from December 1993 to 1995.
Salimov, described as a 'mafia' figure by Olivier Roy, was allegedly involved in smuggling and racketeering during the Soviet era.
[1] In 1990, Yaqub Salimov was convicted for taking part in the Dushanbe riots.
[2] When the Tajikistani Civil War broke out, Salimov was released from prison, and became a leader of Popular Front of Tajikistan, a paramilitary group fighting on the government side.
[2][3] Salimov became a leader of the Kulabi faction, because his mafia was simply the expression of Kulabi solidarity networks, with access to arms and money, according to Olivier Roy.