Ayub Afridi (drug lord)
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Ayub Afridi | |
|---|---|
| Deputy for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas | |
| In office 6 August 1990 – 1993 | |
| President | Ghulam Ishaq Khan |
| Prime Minister | Nawaz Sharif |
| Personal details | |
| Born | c. 1930–1939 |
| Died | 24 November 2009 (aged 70–79) |
| Party | Islamic Democratic Alliance (1990–1993) Pakistan Peoples Party (1993–2009) |
| Occupation | Drug smuggler, politician |
Ayub Afridi (Pashto: ایوب اپریدی, Urdu: ایوب افریدی; c. 1930–1939 – 24 November 2009) was a Pakistani drug smuggler and tribal politician.[1] He is considered to be the primary founder of the widespread drug trade (particularly heroin) in Afghanistan.[2] There are a variety of speculations that Afridi, following his close collaboration with the CIA for Operation Cyclone against the Soviet Union, was approached by the United States as a part of an effort to gain easier access to Afghanistan and the semi-autonomous tribal areas of Pakistan after 9/11.[1]
Born in Khyber Agency during the British Raj, Ayub grew up in a Pashtun family, Landi Kotal, the principal city located around the Khyber Pass, and was an ethnic Pashtun belonging to the Afridi tribe of Zakha Khel.
The westernmost regions of British India that the Pashtuns lived in had historically maintained a strong cultural and ethnic connection to Afghanistan rather than India proper, and therefore Afridi's province was not greatly affected by the Partition of India in 1947, in stark contrast to Pakistan's Sindh and Punjab provinces. He started off as a regular truck driver in his youth but quickly used his transportation connections to make a small fortune by smuggling gold and other contraband. Afridi was known to have forged close ties with General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq after the latter deposed Pakistan's civilian government in 1977 and declared martial law, establishing a military dictatorship.[3] Afridi's connections with Afghan tribes in Pakistan's northwest and throughout Afghanistan itself made him a key player in Zia-ul-Haq and the United States's indirect war against the Soviets in Afghanistan. He has children and grandchildren who are living in Pakistan and leading their lives. This includes Fakhir Alam, Mehtab Alam, Salman Shah and others. Afridi died on 24 November 2009 after suffering a heart attack, and was in his 70s at the time of his death, though his exact age is not known. He is buried at the Ayub Afridi Kalay cemetery in his hometown of Landi Kotal.
Involvement in the Soviet-Afghan War (1979–1989)
Ayub Afridi was a key player in the Soviet–Afghan War. In close collaboration with the CIA, he was able to supplement huge amounts of money for the Mujahideen in Afghanistan through his growing of poppies to supply the heroin trade.[1] Using his smuggling network to move weapons supplied by the CIA to the mujahidin rebels fighting inside Afghanistan. Afridi used the same channels to move Afghan opium to secret laboratories in Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas.[3] Afridi was elected as a Member of National Assembly, Pakistan, in 1990. He contested the election as a free candidate from Khyber Agency.