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

VIGNETTE 4
Loss OF THE TOR GHAR BASE CAMP
by Commander Sher Padshah
Tor Ghar mountain lies eight kilometers northwest of Jalalabad.
Adam Khan and Rasul Khan established the Tor Ghar Mujahideen
base but were killed in early fighting. In 1980, the overall commander
of the base was Qari Alagul. The base held some 200 Mujahideen
from four or five factions. I was a subgroup commander under
Commander Abdullah at the time. We had bases at both Chaharbagh
and Tor Ghar and regularly launched attacks against the Soviets from
Tor Ghar. Our contacts in the DRA had told us that the Soviets would
soon attack Tor Ghar in retaliation. Late one afternoon in July 1980,
our DRA contacts told us that the Soviets were coming that night. I
was with my group in Chaharbagh on the southeast side of the mountain.
Commander Abdullah was at the Tor Ghar base. We immediately
sent him a note to warn him and asked him to bury the ammunition
and everything else since the Soviets would come in strength
and Abdullah's force could not expect to hold them. Abdullah sent a
note back to us. "As long as you hear my 20-shooters, 1
you know that
we are holding. We will swear on the Koran not to leave our position."
Abdullah had 25 men armed with RPGs, Kalashnikovs, Bernaus and
bolt-action rifles.
The Soviets attacked from several directions (Map 11-4 - Tor Ghar)
launching advances from Sorkh Rud, Jalalabad and Darunta. I withdrew
my group from Chaharbagh. Soviet tanks deployed along the
road on the north-west side of the mountain and fired on the base.
BM-21s fired from Jalalabad. Artillery and BM-21s fired from multiple
artillery sites. Helicopters strafed the area. They set the mountain
on fire. Then the Soviets climbed the mountain, reached the base and
fought for three days. In places, it was hand-to-hand combat. We
could not break into the area to help, since the Soviets had sealed the
area. Our Mujahideen fought until their ammunition was gone and
died to the last man. The Soviets destroyed the bases and infested that
mountain with mines.
COMMENTARY: Mujahideen insistence on holding base camps cost them
Commander Sher Padshah is from Laghman Province. Map sheet 3085.
1
Bernau M26 Czechoslovak light machine'guns.