The Other Side of the Mountain: Mujahideen ... - Tribal Analysis Center

VIGNETTE 12
AMBUSH AT QALA-E HAIDAR
by Asil Khan
As early as 1980, Mujahideen began attacking Soviet columns
along the major southwest highway connecting the Afghan capital of
Kabul to Gha- zni and Kandahar. This 480-kilometer stretch was vulnerable
in many areas. The road between Cheltan and Maidan, just
outside of Kabul, was continuously attacked by Mujahideen operating
out of bases in the suburbs of Kabul, Paghman, Kurugh, Arghandeh
and Maidan. Initially, Soviet/ DRA forces would establish security outposts
at key points along the road every time they moved a column on
the highway. According to the DRA security plan, different military
units were responsible for sections of road and for maiming the security
outposts while Soviet or DRA convoys were moving through their
area. Later on, as military traffic along the highway increased, units
would routinely post security details at the outposts in the morning
and pull them out at dusk. One of the outposts was located at the old
fort of Qala-e Haidar, some 15 kilometers west of Kabul. This outpost
was vulnerable to attacks by Mujahideen who would sneak up on the
outpost from neighboring villages which were not under government
control (Map 13 - Haidar).
In the beginning of October 1984, the DRA tired of the repeated
Mujahideen attacks and did not man the outpost for many days. Asil
Khan decided to conduct an ambush at Qala-e Haidar, although he
knew that he could not hold the site for more than a few minutes after
the ambush, since the DRA could quickly reach the outpost from adjacent
outposts. On the night of 18 October 1984, Asil Khan led a 15man
team to Qala-e Haidar. There had been some road repair by the
outpost and the road had been scraped down and graded. Asil Khan
had his men bury three powerful remote-controlled mines in the road
immediately in front of the outpost. They also buried or disguised the
wires leading away from the mines to the ambush site. They spent two
nights mining the highway and preparing fighting positions in the
orchards and in a ditch in front of Qala-e Haider. Lookouts watched
the road for approaching columns.
Asil Khan is a famous urban guerrilla who operated in and around Kabul. He belonged to
the NIFA faction. Other notes and the DRA security plan consulted for this vignette. [Map
sheets 2785, 2786, 2885 and 2886].