The Kabul Tribune (KT) — Abdul Zahir Qadeer, a former senior Afghan lawmaker and military commander, has been extradited to the United States to face federal charges alleging he conspired to traffic hundreds of kilograms of heroin and methamphetamine, along with military-grade weapons, U.S. prosecutors said Friday.
Qadeer, 52, was arrested in Nairobi, Kenya, on April 15, 2025, and was extradited to New York on Thursday, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. He is expected to make his initial appearance in federal court in Manhattan.
Federal prosecutors allege that Qadeer negotiated deals to sell large quantities of heroin and methamphetamine intended for the U.S. market, as well as heavy machine guns, sniper rifles, assault rifles, rocket-propelled grenade launchers, pistols and grenades.
According to a criminal complaint unsealed Friday, Qadeer believed he was negotiating with members of an international drug trafficking organization. Instead, the buyers were confidential informants working with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration as part of an undercover investigation.
Prosecutors said Qadeer sold a two-kilogram test shipment of methamphetamine in Johannesburg, South Africa, in December 2024 for about $14,000. They allege he later negotiated larger transactions involving hundreds of kilograms of heroin and methamphetamine, as well as military-grade weapons that he believed would be used to protect drug trafficking operations from U.S. law enforcement.
"While purporting to be a political leader of Afghanistan, Abdul Zahir Qadeer was allegedly leading a criminal enterprise dealing in dangerous and addictive narcotics and heavy weapons," Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement.
U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton for the Southern District of New York described the alleged conspiracy as involving "massive amounts of poison and weaponry" that posed a serious threat to the United States.
DEA Administrator Terrance Cole said Qadeer, who once served in Afghanistan's Border Force, allegedly used his position to facilitate international drug and weapons trafficking rather than protect the country's borders.
According to the Justice Department, Qadeer served as a general commanding the Eighth Border Battalion in Takhar province before entering politics. He was elected first deputy speaker of Afghanistan's lower house of parliament, the Wolesi Jirga, in 2012. The parliament ceased functioning after the Taliban returned to power in August 2021.
Prosecutors allege Qadeer continued to participate in international narcotics and weapons trafficking after leaving public office. In April 2025, they said, he traveled to Nairobi believing he was meeting members of the trafficking organization to finalize an agreement. Instead, he met undercover DEA sources and was arrested by Kenyan authorities after the meeting.
Qadeer is charged with conspiracy to import narcotics into the United States and firearms offenses involving machine guns and destructive devices. If convicted, he faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison on the narcotics conspiracy charge. The firearms charges carry mandatory minimum penalties of up to 30 years and maximum sentences of life in prison.
