Mujahideen Tactics in the Soviet-Afghan War - Bennett Park Raiders
Mujahideen Tactics in the Soviet-Afghan War - Bennett Park Raiders
Mujahideen Tactics in the Soviet-Afghan War - Bennett Park Raiders
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Chapter 6, Vignette 5 Page 167<br />
<strong>the</strong> myth that <strong>the</strong> <strong>Mujahideen</strong> along <strong>the</strong> Gardez-Khowst highway are<br />
<strong>in</strong>v<strong>in</strong>cible by open<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong> unopenable road. If <strong>the</strong> <strong>Soviet</strong> goal was to<br />
escalate and to threaten Pakistan, <strong>the</strong>n <strong>the</strong> <strong>Soviet</strong>s needed to br<strong>in</strong>g<br />
more forces to Paktia Prov<strong>in</strong>ce after <strong>the</strong>y opened <strong>the</strong> road to Khowst.<br />
General Zadran thought that this was too dangerous a gamble for<br />
<strong>the</strong> <strong>Soviet</strong>s to take, consider<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong> probable <strong>in</strong>ternational and<br />
regional implications. Instead, General Zadran concluded that <strong>the</strong><br />
<strong>Soviet</strong>s meant to show <strong>the</strong>ir military might to <strong>the</strong> world by do<strong>in</strong>g<br />
<strong>the</strong> impossible, so that <strong>the</strong>y could <strong>the</strong>n end <strong>the</strong> <strong>Soviet</strong> occupation<br />
of <strong>Afghan</strong>istan and withdraw with a solid victory to <strong>the</strong>ir credit. In<br />
order to accomplish <strong>the</strong> impossible, <strong>the</strong> <strong>Soviet</strong>s needed to force<br />
<strong>the</strong> ma<strong>in</strong> road from Gardez with at least a division and, hav<strong>in</strong>g<br />
achieved <strong>the</strong> breakthrough, move toward Khowst to l<strong>in</strong>k-up with<br />
<strong>the</strong> DRA 25th Infantry Division which would try to open a corridor<br />
to <strong>the</strong> west. General Zadran's f<strong>in</strong>al analysis was that <strong>the</strong> <strong>Soviet</strong>s<br />
needed to flex <strong>the</strong>ir muscles by open<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong> road that had been closed<br />
for all those years.<br />
We started to prepare for <strong>the</strong> <strong>Soviet</strong> offensive aga<strong>in</strong>st <strong>the</strong><br />
Satakandow pass. The shoulders of <strong>the</strong> pass loom some 400 meters<br />
over <strong>the</strong> road and, once <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> pass, <strong>the</strong> road follows a slow, twisted<br />
route packed with hairp<strong>in</strong> curves. It is an excellent place to defend.<br />
We re<strong>in</strong>forced <strong>the</strong> m<strong>in</strong>efields along <strong>the</strong> road. • We laid three m<strong>in</strong>e<br />
belts on a three kilometer front at <strong>the</strong> open<strong>in</strong>g of <strong>the</strong> pass with 300-<br />
400 meters between m<strong>in</strong>e belts. We re<strong>in</strong>forced our positions on <strong>the</strong><br />
high ground overlook<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong> road and pass. We had a total of ten<br />
BM-12s <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> area. We crowned <strong>the</strong> pass with ZGU-1 air defense<br />
mach<strong>in</strong>e guns. These are both good positional weapons but are<br />
very difficult to displace rapidly when <strong>the</strong> situation requires. We<br />
also had DShK mach<strong>in</strong>e guns, 75mm and 82mm recoilless rifles<br />
and plenty of RPG-7s. Haji Nawab Khan commanded <strong>the</strong><br />
Mawlawi Nezamudd<strong>in</strong> Haqani was a group commander and a deputy to Jalaludd<strong>in</strong> Haqani.<br />
He was a member of <strong>the</strong> fundamentalist Islamic Party (HIK) led by Mawlawi Mohammed<br />
Yunus Khalis. He jo<strong>in</strong>ed <strong>the</strong> <strong>Mujahideen</strong> follow<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong> communist coup <strong>in</strong> 1978 and fought<br />
<strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> Paktia area. Prior to <strong>the</strong> <strong>Soviet</strong> <strong>in</strong>vasion, his group had liberated <strong>the</strong> area surround<strong>in</strong>g<br />
Khowst and only <strong>the</strong> city of Khowst rema<strong>in</strong>ed under government control.<br />
Mawlawi Abdul-Rahman of Zadran is <strong>the</strong> son of Noor Mahmuod from Kandow village.<br />
When <strong>Soviet</strong> forces attacked Satakandow pass, his group of 100-120 local <strong>Mujahideen</strong><br />
occupied positions at Ghelgoy. They were armed with 82mm recoilless rifles, ZGU-1<br />
mach<strong>in</strong>e guns, DShK mach<strong>in</strong>e guns, 82mm mortars, MBRL and one St<strong>in</strong>ger. His group<br />
fought a rearguard action through <strong>the</strong> pass to Sewak before <strong>the</strong>y went <strong>in</strong>to <strong>the</strong> mounta<strong>in</strong>s.<br />
He lost ten KIA <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> fight<strong>in</strong>g.