TALIBAN-LINKED DRUG LORD FIRST AFGHAN TO BE EXTRADITED TO U.S.

Waged Jihad Through Heroin

NEW YORK - An Afghan drug lord with alleged links to the Taliban has
become the first ever Afghan citizen to be extradited to the United
States, U.S. federal prosecutors said yesterday.

Identified by George W. Bush, the U.S. President, as one of the
world's most-wanted drug kingpins, Baz Mohammad stands accused of
heading an international organization responsible for smuggling more
than US$25-million worth of heroin into the United States and other
countries since 1990.

Mr. Mohammad was brought to New York last week.

According to an indictment unsealed in federal court here, he told
members of his organization that selling heroin in the United States
was an act of jihad because they were taking Americans' money for a
product that would kill them.

"We've made history today," said Karen Tandy, administrator of the
U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

"We've put an end to the safe haven of an Afghan drug lord who
orchestrated an international heroin conspiracy that poisoned Americans."

"The first-ever extradition of a drug trafficker from Afghanistan
proves that justice and the will of the people to be free from the
tyranny of the drug trade will prevail," she added.

Mr. Mohammad allegedly had close links to the former Taliban regime
in Afghanistan that was ousted from power in a U.S.-led operation in
2001. According to the indictment, his organization collected heroin
proceeds in the United States for the Taliban.

He is also believed to have had ties to several Islamic extremist groups.

The indictment charged Mr. Mohammad with controlling opium fields in
Afghanistan's Nangarhar province. The opium harvest was processed
into heroin in laboratories in Afghanistan and Pakistan, then shipped
to the United States inside suitcases, clothing and containers.

If convicted, the man faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.