On 29 May 2020, influential senior Taliban commander Mualana Muhammad Ali Jan Ahmed told Foreign Policy that Yaqoob became the acting leader to the entire Taliban after Akhundzada and First Deputy Leader Sirajuddin Haqqani became ill with COVID-19 during the COVID-19 pandemic in Afghanistan, stating "Our hero, the son of our great leader, Mullah Yaqoob, is running the entire Taliban operation in Haibatullah's absence."