In Dec. 1979, the then đȘmighty U.S.S.R sent its military to invade Afghanistan.
They were sent to support the Afghan communist govt. in its conflictđ€ș with anti-communist Muslim guerrillas.
Soon, the Soviet govt. assumed complete military and political control of capital Kabulđ and large portions of the country.
Met a fierce resistance
The Soviet invasion led to the start of a guerrilla war by insurgent groupsâ collectively called as the mujahideen, against the Soviet Army.
They were extensively đbacked by the U.S, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan, thus turning the conflict into a proxy Cold War.
The US intelligence agencyđ”ââ CIA played a key role in this conflict by funding military operations.
In addition, thousands of Muslim volunteers travelled from all parts of the worldđ to join and fight along with the mujahideen.
A Decisive tactic
The Soviets used massive air powerđ« against rebels but they successfully neutralized it through the use ofshoulder-fired antiaircraft âStingerâ missiles supplied by the U.S.
Overall Soviets lost over 300 helicopters and over 100 jetsđŹ.
How it all ended?
By the mid-1980s, the military and diplomatic cost of the war became unbearableđ for the USSR.
Having lost over 15,000 troops in the war, the then Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev ordered the withdrawalđââ of his countryâs troops which got completed in 1989.
Massive Human toll
About 2 million Afghan civilians diedđ and over 4 million fled the country as refugees, mostly to Pakistan and Iran during this conflict.
A huge Impact
The failure in the Afghan war later played a contributing factor to the fall— of the Soviet Union in 1991.
Also, the Pakistani jihadi machinery which was set up to recruit, train and operationalise Mujahideen in Afghanistan turned its guns toward Kashmir in India. Thus, the Afghan invasion, which ended in 1989 led to the start of terrorismđż in Kashmir.
In Popular culture too
The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan was the inspiration behind the movieđ, Rambo III.
In it, the hero Rambo played by Sylvester Stallone goes to Afghanistan to fightđ€ș Russian army to rescue his friend, a military commander from the Sovietâs custody.
What happened to Sharbat Gul?
In 2003, Steve McCurry searchedđ§ for Sharbat Gul and found her living in a refugee camp.
He clicked her pic which again made the headlines world over.
In Nov. 2016, Sharbat Gul was deported backđ to Afghanistan.
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