Ahmad Zia Saraj served as the General Director of the National Directorate of Security (NDS) of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan from September 2019 to 15 August, 2021. Prior to this position, he served as the deputy director general for operations, chief of counter terrorism department, deputy chief of counterintelligence and foreign intelligence. For almost two decades (2001-2019), he served as chief of liaison of NDS.
In 2013, Saraj obtained his master’s degree from King’s College London in the field of defence studies. He was also awarded the level 7 degree in strategic management and leadership by Chartered Management Institute of the United Kingdom. In 2012, Saraj attended Advanced Command and Staff Course at Shrivenham. Saraj has been Visiting Professor at KCSI since 2023.