Mujahideen Tactics in the Soviet-Afghan War - Bennett Park Raiders

Chapter 8, Vignette 3 Page 221
that I would lay down a base of fire so that they could cross the field.
Once they crossed the field, they were to go to the flank of the field
and hold it. Just behind us was the house where the IRMA
Mujahideen had stayed. I did not know that they had gone and were
worried that they would unintentionally fire into our backs. I fired
as my Mujahideen crossed the field, but they came under fire. We all
fired back and retreated into the mountains. As we started up the
mountains, we bumped into still more Soviets who were positioned in
the mountains. As we were taking shelter behind a wall, one of my
Mujahideen was hit and killed. We did not know this area very well,
so we did not know how to get out. It took us about three hours to
find our way safely up into the mountain. As we reached the mountain,
we met the IRMA Mujahideen who had escaped earlier. They
asked us to use tracer rounds to mark targets for their mortars. I
fired at the enclosure that_jye had started out from with tracer
bullets. The IRMA Mujahideen then fired their mortar at the enclosure.
As daylight broke the IRMA Mujahideen mortar fire became
more effective. In all, they fired 42 mortar rounds. The Soviets did
not want to stay around and get mortared, so they withdrew. As I
watched the Soviets pull back, I realized that we had prevailed and
that my dream had come true. It was now time to go forward.
After the battle, I learned that the IRMA Mujahideen also had one
of their group killed by the Soviets. Two Afghan women were also
killed near the enclosure. The Soviet force had come from Jalalabad
(about 20 kilometers away). 5
They had come at night on their APCs.
They were guided by an Afghan named Nader. He was from Shewa.
Since the DRA was established in this area, the people were divided in
their loyalties and people like Nader worked against us.
COMMENTARY: The Mujahideen were lax about security in this area,
despite the known divided loyalties within the populace. The guesthouse
that the Mujahideen were staying in was not a private home, but
a Mujahideen guesthouse regularly used by Mujahideen passing
through the area. All the local villagers knew about its presence and
function. The Soviet's guide came from Shewa, which is 15 kilometers
away and yet he had no trouble pinpointing its location at night. The
Soviets drove through a well-populated area on APCs to conduct their
raid, yet the Mujahideen got no advance warning and their sentry was
5
The Soviet force was either from the 66th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade or the
Spetsnaz battalion based in Jalalabad.