View source for Ahmad Zahir

== Assassination ==
Ahmad  Zahir was assassinated by unknown gunman from the top of a mountain on 14th, June 1979, on his 33rd birthday. It was reported in the media that he killed in a car accident around the [[Salang Tunnel]], but some claim he was assassinated as his political stance was at odds with the [[Democratic Republic of Afghanistan|Marxist government]] of the time; supposedly he was lured out the city by a close friend and two female accomplices and subsequently murdered.<ref name="bio" /> Others believe that he was murdered on the order of senior politician [[Hafizullah Amin]] or that of Amin's trusted aide Daoud Taroon, due to an affair between Zahir and Amin's daughter.<ref name="bbc.co.uk" /><ref name="khaama.com">{{Cite news|url=https://www.khaama.com/ahmad-zahirs-death-anniversary-observed-in-kabul-01248/|title=Ahmad Zahir's death anniversary observed in Kabul|date=13 June 2016|access-date=19 November 2021|newspaper=The Khaama Press News Agency}}</ref> A large crowd of mourners attended Zahir's funeral in Kabul, clogging the city streets and bringing daily activities to a halt.<ref name="Inskeep" /> 
He left behind a son, [[Rishad Zahir|Rishad]], from his first wife Najia, who he eventually divorced.