Zahir Qadir

For his father with a similar name, see Abdul Qadir (Afghan leader).

Hajji Abdul Zahir Qadir is a member of parliament in Afghanistan.[1][2][3][4] He formerly was a General in Afghanistan's Border Guard.[5]

Zahir Qadir is the son of Abdul Qadir a senior member of the anti-Taliban United Islamic Front (Northern Alliance), and one of the first Vice Presidents of the Afghan Transitional Administration. Zahir Qadir's father was assassinated on July 8, 2002.[6]

Zahir Qadir and two other anti-Taliban leaders were freed from a Taliban prison in 1999 by Abdul-Razzaq Hekmati and Hekmatullah Hekmati, two former Mujahids who had served with the Taliban when they became disillusioned.[5]

His family has long-standing ties with Mohammed Zahir Shah, the last king of Afghanistan.

References

  1. ↑ "Afghan House Speaker Votes End with no Results". TOLO News. January 2011.
  2. ↑ Burke, Jason (October 6, 2002). "A year of living on the edge". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 2007-12-31.
  3. ↑ "Pak seals border temporarily following shootout in Afghanistan". Outlook India. November 8, 2002. Retrieved 2007-12-19.
  4. ↑ "Border clashes open new Afghan front line". London: The Telegraph. July 18, 2003. Retrieved 2007-12-19.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Carlotta Gall, Andy Worthington (February 5, 2008). "Time Runs Out for an Afghan Held by the U.S.". New York Times. Retrieved 2008-02-05. Two of those officials were men Mr. Hekmati had helped escape from the Taliban’s top security prison in Kandahar in 1999: Ismail Khan, now the minister of energy; and Hajji Zaher, a general in the Border Guards. Both men said they appealed to American officials about Mr. Hekmati’s case, but to no effect.

    “What he did was very important for all Afghan people who were against the Taliban,” Hajji Zaher said of Mr. Hekmati’s role in organizing his prison break. “He was not a man to take to Guantánamo.” Hajji Zaher, whose father served as vice president under Mr. Karzai for six months, warned that the case of Mr. Hekmati, who is widely known here by his nickname, Baraso, would discourage Afghans from backing the government against the Taliban. “No one is going to help the government,” he said.

  6. ↑ Meena Baktash (July 8, 2002). "Abdul Qadir: Key leader in Afghan struggle". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 2007-12-31.