Abdul Zahir Qadir, former Deputy Speaker of Afghanistan’s parliament, has been arrested in Kenya and is facing extradition to the United States on charges related to drug trafficking and possession of heavy weaponry.
According to The Nairobi Times, Qadir was apprehended at a hotel in Nairobi shortly after arriving in the country on 14 April 2025 aboard a Qatar Airways flight. Kenyan police, acting on a request from the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), secured a detention warrant from the court, citing Qadir's lack of a fixed residence and high flight risk.
Kenyan prosecutors revealed that a US court had issued an arrest warrant for Qadir on 25 March 2025. Nicholas DiFrancesco, a DEA special agent, confirmed that an official complaint had been filed in the Southern District of New York. The charges include conspiracy to import narcotics and possession of a machine gun.
On 15 April 2025, a Nairobi court reviewed the matter and granted authorisation for the extradition process to move forward. The court also approved the Kenyan Attorney General’s request for Qadir’s continued detention, citing concerns that his release could jeopardise the extradition and hinder investigations into potential accomplices who remain at large.
Authorities warned that Qadir might attempt to flee to a jurisdiction lacking an extradition treaty with the United States, thereby obstructing the legal process.
The Nairobi Directorate of Criminal Investigations confirmed Qadir's arrest and affirmed that he would remain in custody pending further proceedings. Meanwhile, his family had previously claimed he was detained in Dubai, a claim now contradicted by the official account from Kenyan authorities.
