Nisar Muhammad Yousafzai

Nisar Muhammad Yousafzai (; ; 1897 – 8 October 1937) was an Afghan communist revolutionary, educationist, soldier and Soviet politician who played a significant role in the creation of Tajikistan. A decorated soldier of the Third Anglo-Afghan War, Nisar would take part in a Soviet expedition in Gilan and later be one of the main proponents advocating for the creation of a Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic within the Soviet Union. He was Tajikistan's first minister of education from 1926 until his murder in 1937. He was also the first ever Afghan communist.

Early life Nisar Muhammad Yousafzai was born to a Esapzai Pashtun family in the village of Zaida, Swabi District of the North-West Frontier Province in 1897. He was the son of Awal Khan and his grandfather was Mohammad Ali.

Third Anglo-Afghan War In 1919 Afghanistan under King Amanullah Khan started the Third Anglo-Afghan War in an attempt to retake the Pashtun regions west of the Indus river. Nisar Muhammad being an ethnic Pashtun enlisted in the Afghan Army to fight the British and reunite his homeland with Afghanistan, he received the Afghan Order of Courage medal for his bravery. Following the war, Swabi remained under British occupation and Nisar found himself sentenced to death. However, he managed to escape captivity and sought refuge in Tashkent, where he assumed the name Nisor Avalovich Magomedov.

Soviet politics In Tashkent, Nisar Muhammad became an active member of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. He became an advocate for a separate Tajik state outside of the Turkestan SSR. Muhammad along with others, published newspapers and campaigned for Tajik autonomy. In 1924, the Tajik Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was formed as part of the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic and would later become the Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic. In 1920, Muhammad joined a Soviet team tasked with reporting on the events unfolding in Persia (now Iran). During this mission, Muhammad provided support to Mirza Kuchik Khan, leader of the Persian Socialist Soviet Republic.

The street that is home to the Ministry of Education and Science, bears Nisar's name. In 2021, the acclaimed Tajik director Safarbek Solekh released a documentary titled "Nisar," which featured interviews with Muhammad's descendants and Tajik historians. He is described as "The son of Afghans who dedicated his life for Tajiks".