Imran Zakhaev (Original)

"Nice Shot, Lieutenant. I think you blew off his arm! Shock and blood loss will do the rest."

- Captain Macmillan.

Imran Zakhaev is a male Russian arms dealer and ultranationalist that features as the main antagonist in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. He is the leader of the so-called "Four Horsemen", and the cunning mastermind behind the uprisings in Russia and the Arabian Peninsula.

Biography
Fifteen years before the civil war in Russia, Zakhaev was nothing more than an arms dealer who saw the collapse of the communist regime in the Soviet Union as an opportunity to salvage radioactive fuel rods from the Chernobyl nuclear powerplant in Prypjat, Ukraine, and sell the precious uranium as nuclear material in the black markets. His criminal activities were notified by the British intelligence, and the Special Air Service gained its first assassination order since the ending of World War II. The SAS dispatched two operatives, Captain MacMillan and then-Lieutenant Price, as snipers in Ukraine to eliminate Zakhaev. Pripyat, an abandoned ghost town since the 1986 Chernobyl disaster, and the peaceful countryside surrounding the city were swarming with Russian mercenaries employed by Zakhaev, but MacMillan and Price, wearing protective ghillie suits, were able to sneak to the city unnoticed by the soldiers. Sniping from over 800 meters with his Barret M82.50 sniper rifle, Price aimed and shot Zakhaev in the left shoulder, when his target was meeting his business partners near to the Chernobyl powerplant. The Russians attempted to elimate the intruders, but MacMillan and Price were able to escape the city. MacMillan thought Zakhaev would die from shock and blood loss, but this would not be the case. Zakhaev survived, but the failed assassination attempt cost his left arm.

Fifteen years later, Zakhaev became the chairman of the Russian Ultranationalist party. In his opinion, the current Russian government had "prostituted" his beloved homeland with the west, ruining the economy and culture of the country in the process. Harbouring a strong and keen hatred of Western countries, Zakhaev seeked to return Russia to its "prime", probably seeking to rearm and political reform and ultimately power for himself. To topple the Russian current government, Zakhaev took the next step in his plan and the Ultranationalist party waged a political crisis that escalated into civil war in Russia. The Ultranationalist troops were supported by old Soviet-era vehicles, including BM-21 rocket artilleries, BMP-2 infantry fighting vehicles and Mi-24 helicopter gunships, and the field commander of the Ultranationalist forces was Zakhaev's son, Viktor Zakhaev. The Russian civil war became critical to world peace as it became clear that if the Ultranationalists would win, Zakhaev would have unlimited access to the entire Russian nuclear weapons arsenal, including over 15,000 active nuclear warheads. However, his plan to overthrow the government met heavy resistance from the Russian military units, loyal to the current Russian government.

Zakhaev understood his plan would never work, because the civil war could draw attention of the United States and United Kingdom that supported the current Russian government. However, Zakhaev had an influential political ally in an unnamed country in the Arabian Peninsula, a military commander named Khaled Al-Asad. Zakhaev contacted Al-Asad, and funded and masterminded a military coup in which President Yasir Al-Fulani was overthrown by the soldiers loyal to Al-Asad. Zakhaev and his son took part in the coup in the Arabian Peninsula; V. Zakhaev was in the car that transported President Al-Fulani to the arena where he was executed, and Zakhaev himself witnessed Al-Fulani's execution. In fact, it was Zakhaev who gave Al-Asad the same pistol that was used to execute Al-Fulani on national television. Al-Asad assumed control of his homeland, causing political instability in the Middle East and forcing United States Marine Corps to invade the country, and the capital city of Al-Asad's homeland was soon under attack by the US forces. However, Al-Asad's soldiers detonated a Russian-made nuclear bomb, levelling the city and wiping out the invading enemy force. Al-Asad then took refuge Azerbaijan, where he was protected by Zakhaev's ultranationalist forces. However, the SAS operatives led by Captain Price captured and interrogated Al-Asad, who was then killed by Price. The evidence gathered by the SAS revealed that Zakhaev had provided for Al-Asad the nuclear weapon detonated in the Arabian Peninsula, and that he was the mastermind responsible for everything in the Middle East.

When the United Kingdom and United States understood Zakhaev had planned to divert the attention of both countries from the Russian civil war, the Special Air Service and United States Marine Corps Force Reconnaissance were ordered to locate and capture Viktor Zakhaev, in order to persuade him to reveal the location of his father. However, the operation failed when Zakhaev's son escaped and committed suicide to prevent his capture. Angered by the death of his son, Zakhaev demanded all US and British forces to leave Russia immediately or "suffer the consequences" by launching ICBMs from the missile silo captured by the Ultranationalist forces, but the SAS and Force Reconnaissance operatives were dispatched to Central Russia to deactivate the nuclear warheads in the silo. Zakhaev launched two RT-2UTTH Topol-M ballistic missiles to the eight largest cities in the East Coast of the United States: Boston, Hartford, New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, D.C., Richmond and Norfolk. Since the missiles carried multiple independent nuclear warheads, it was estimated that the nuclear holocaust on the US soil would kill over 41 million US citizens. However, the SAS and Force Reconnaissance operatives were able to secure the silo and deactivate all nuclear warheads in the missiles. The SAS and Force Reconnaissance operatives attempted to flee from the silo, but the bridge that was crucial to their escape was destroyed by an Ultranationalist Mi-24 helicopter gunship.

During the fire fight on the bridge, Staff Sergeant Griggs of the Force Reconnaissance was killed by the Ultranationalist, and Zakhaev and bodyguards arrived to the scene. Zakhaev executed SAS operative Gaz and his bodyguards shot two other SAS commandos, and he moved to kill Captain Price and Sergeant John "Soap" MacTavish. Suddenly, Zakhaev and his bodyguards were distracted by the explosion of the Mi-24 helicopter, caused by a loyalist Mi-28 attack helicopter and the arrival of Sergeant Kamarov's troops. Captain Price used this opportunity to slide his handgun to Soap, and when Zakhaev turned back to look the SAS operatives, he and his bodyguards were shot down by Soap. After Zakhaev's death, the leadership struggles began in the Ultranationalist party.