| Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan (1978–1987) د افغانستان د لوی انتخاباتي جمهوريت مسلحې ځواک (Pashto) قوای مسلح جمهوری دموکراتیک افغانستان (Dari) Armed Forces of the Republic of Afghanistan(1987–1992) د افغانستان د جمهوري ریاست وسله وال ځواکونه (Pashto) قوای مسلح جمهوری افغانستان (Dari) | |
|---|---|
 Shoulder patch of the Afghan Army (قوای مسلح,lit. 'Armed Forces'), 1978–1992 | |
| Motto | وطن یا کفن (Watan ya Kaffan; "Country or the Shroud") سر ورکوو٬ سنګر نه ورکوو (Sar Warkawoo, Sangar ne Warkawoo; "Sacrifice our Heads, but not our Trench") |
| Founded | April 1978; 47 years ago (1978-04) |
| Disbanded | April 1992; 33 years ago (1992-04) |
| Service branches | Afghan ArmyAfghan Air Force Afghan Border Force |
| Headquarters | Ministry of Defense, Kabul |
| Leadership | |
| Commander-in-Chief |
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| Minister of Defence |
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| Chief of Staff |
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| Personnel | |
| Military age | 18–40 (raised to 20–45 in 1981) |
| Conscription | Yes |
| Industry | |
| Domestic suppliers |
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| Foreign suppliers | |
| Related articles | |
| History | Afghanistan–Pakistan border conflicts Saur Revolution Chindawol uprising 1979 Herat uprising 1979 uprisings in Afghanistan 3 Hoot uprising Bala Hissar uprising 1980 student protests in Kabul Tajbeg Palace assault Dehrawud Offensive (1984) Sorubay Assault (1985) Soviet-Afghan War Afghan Civil War (1989–1992) |
| Ranks | Military ranks of Afghanistan |
TheArmed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan, known as theArmed Forces of the Republic of Afghanistan after1986, was the national military ofAfghanistan from 1978 to 1992.
The Guard Regiments of the Afghan Army were established in the 1970s, underDaoud Khan and were disbanded in 1978-79 to strengthen the 8th Division’s new brigades. In 1978, the Afghan Army had its own Republican Guard Brigade, which was part of the Afghan Army under theRepublic of Afghanistan.[1] After theSaur Revolution, a violentMarxist–Leninist coup orchestrated by thePeople's Democratic Party of Afghanistan in 1978, the brigade remained as part of the army. The Republican Guard Brigade was present during theSaur Revolution Flag Raising Ceremony in 1978, alongside PresidentNur Muhammad Taraki andHafizullah Amin, donningStahlhelms from the old regime with red bands, and holding the Republican-era flag of the Afghan Army.[2][3] In 1983-84, the Guard Regiments were reformed due to growth in military strength during the tenure ofBabrak Karmal.[4]
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In 1978, the Presidential Guard Brigade was also referred to as the 21st Guard Regiment until 1988. The 44th Guards Regiment was identified in 1979, though it may have undergoing reformation. The 22nd Guard Regiment was also present during theSecond Battle of Zhawar.[4] The brigade had various roles, such as performing ceremonial duties likemilitary funerals, protecting monuments and theArg Presidential Palace,[5][6] and serving asguards of honour and thePresidential Guard. Additionally, the Presidential Guard and theSoviet VDV were often together near the Arg and were photographed in a “Soviet-Afghan Friendship Room”.
During the early months ofBabrak Karmal’s presidency, the Presidential Guard were given a different style of uniform by April 1980, compared to the usual Afghan military dress uniform.[6][5] They had their own distinct sleeve patches and cap badges, instead of theParcham emblem worn by every branch in theAfghan Armed Forces. Both the patch and the cap badge featured the iconography of a sword going through ahorse shoe, surrounded by golden wheat, making the Presidential Guard distinct from servicemen in other branches. These uniforms were temporarily used during theTransitional Islamic State of Afghanistan.[7][8] The Presidential Guard also carriedsabres for military parades, as well asMosin–Nagant rifles withbayonets fixed to them when standing guard on parade grounds, all for ceremonial purposes.[9][10]
The Presidential Guard Brigade became part of the Guards Corps established in 1988, later renamed to Special Guard, orGard-e-Khas, along with the 22nd and 44th Guard Regiment. The name was later changed to theAfghan National Guard, orGard-e-Mili, which consisted of the 88th Heavy Artillery Regiment and 1st Motorized Infantry Brigade, both of which also fought inJalalabad.[11] As a result of the disbandment of theAfghan Air Assault Brigades, the 37th and 38th Commando Battalion also became part of the National Guard, according toUrban.[12] However, this is disputed, as Conroy states that the 37th and 38th Commando Battalion did not join the National Guard, but rather maintaining their independence and were sent toBala Hissar Fortress.[13] By 1988, the Afghan National Guard had approximately 14,000 officers and personnel organised into two divisions, three infantry brigades, an artillery battalion, a SCUD battalion, and various other units, all equipped with modern weapons and equipment. The force was headquartered atBala Hissar Fort, significantly enhancing its defensive presence.
In 2005, Afghan Interior Minister Yousuf Stanizai issued a statement that a burial site had been found in the province ofPaktia, containing the bodies of 530 soldiers from theDRA army who were executed after surrendering to Mujahideen forces in the area.[14] This was soon followed by the discovery of another burial site in the same area, which contained over 1,000 bodies of DRA soldiers and officers.[15][16]
According to the province's governor at the time, the burial sites contained soldiers of the Afghan Army's 9th Brigade, identified by the remains of their military uniforms. These soldiers were killed by fighters belonging toAfghan mujahideen field commanders after the brigade had been disbanded.[17]
In 1985, during thePanjshir offensives, corpses of Afghan Army troops, as well as the corpses ofPDPA party members, ordinary people, and parents who allowed their sons to join the Afghan Armed Forces, were discovered by theSoviet Army and detachments ofAfghan paratroopers inPanjshir, more specifically in the “Safed-Chi” gorge. The corpses were subsequently dragged out and laid in straight lines after their discovery.Kabul National TV and Soviet media from theState Television and Radio Fund claimed that these soldiers and civilians were initially prisoners who were dragged down the stairs in the area before being locked in underground prisons, tortured, and denied food and water before being executed by the Mujahideen inPanjshir. An Afghan paratrooper interviewed at the site of the massacre claimed that 264 people died in the killings perpetrated byJamiat-e Islami altogether.[18][19]
On 9 January 1980, a law on universal conscription was adopted, allowing the government to draft men aged 20 to 40 years old into the army. Subsequently, the law was amended.[20]
The Armed Forces of theDemocratic Republic of Afghanistan included:[21][22]
However, it is reported that KhAD-i-Nezami was the military intelligence branch of the Afghan Army, separate fromKhAD.
Creation and staffing of civil defense detachments were carried out on a territorial basis. In comparison to the Afghan Army, these civil defense detachments were equipped with older WW II-era surplus weapons, especially during the early part of the war, such as thePPSh-41. The first rural self-defense units were created in April–May 1980, in theSurkh-Rōd District ofNangarhar Province by residents of the villages of Hatyrkhel, Ibrahimkhel and Umarkhel.[26]
In the summer of 1980, the creation of other units began. In December 1983, the unification of territorial self-defense units into a civil defense system began.[27] The Afghan Border Guard additionally had their own anthem.[28]
In 1978, the 1st Army Corps, also referred to as theCentral Corps, was stationed inKabul. The 2nd Army Corps was stationed inKandahar, and the 3rd Army Corps was stationed inGardez.[29] By the spring of 1992, the Afghan Army consisted of six corps in total with the 1st now being stationed inJalalabad, the 4th stationed inHerat, the 5th inCharikar, and the 6th Corps atKunduz.[30]
All three corps of the Afghan Army had their own “Special Purpose Battalions (SpN)”, that had ties to the Intelligence Directorate of the Afghan Army (KhAD-e-Nezami).[31] The 203rd SpN was tied to the 1st Army Corps, the 212th SpN was tied to the 3rd Army Corps, and the 230th SpN was tied to the 2nd Army Corps. SpN operators took part in theMarmoul offensives alongside theKGB Border Guard, theBattles of Zhawar, andOperation Magistral.Mark Urban referred to the SpN as “Reconnaissance Battalions”. It is unlikely that the three newer corps had their own Special Purpose Battalions during the spring of 1992, due to the government nearing complete collapse.
The Afghan Army had 13 infantry divisions, with two separate divisions, such as:[32]
Reportedly, the 17th Division was sent to halt the1979 Herat uprising, but due to the lack ofKhalq party members in the division, they mutinied.[34]
Under the Presidency ofMohammad Najibullah in 1988, several new divisions were formed from local pro-government militia formations, such as the 53rd Infantry Division (also known as the “Jowzjani” militia) led byAbdul Rashid Dostum and a division in eitherHelmand orKandahar led byAbdul Jabar Qahraman.[35][36][37] These new divisions were the:
Additionally, there could have been a possible division inLashkar-Gah, Helmand Province.
The Armed Forces of the DRA had 22 brigades altogether, consisting of combined arms, tank, artillery, and commando brigades; aRepublican guard brigade in 1978 (which became part of the Afghan National Guard in 1988); and an air defense brigade, border, and army logistics brigades.
TheAfghan Commando Brigades were attached to the Afghan Army. Some were under the control of KhAD-i-Nezami (the Afghan Army’s military intelligence wing), havingairborne assault capabilities until 1988, just before theSoviet withdrawal from Afghanistan.
The Afghan commando air assault brigades ceased operations in 1988 during theSoviet withdrawal from Afghanistan. In 1991, the 666th Commando Battalion was completely decimated during theSiege of Khost by theMujahideen. Information on the fate of other commando battalions is unknown, but supposedly, none of them appeared on a list of surrendered units that came under the control of themujahideen in 1992.
Border Command
The Border Force of theDemocratic Republic of Afghanistan initially reported to the Ministry of Frontiers and Tribes before being reverted to theMinistry of Defense. Their job was to prevent infiltration into the country, as many foreigners (such asAfghan Arabs)[38] illegally entered Afghanistan to join themujahideen in their fight against theSoviet Army and theAfghan Armed Forces. Prominent Arab mujahideen figures includeOsama bin Laden andAbdullah Yusuf Azzam, who was potentially assassinated by KhAD. The SovietKGB was also involved in the training and organization of the Afghan Border Forces, which were reportedly more effective than regular Afghan Army troops in protecting borders nearPakistan. The Afghan Border Forces were also involved in extensive mining of the borders, in order to prevent further infiltration.
The Afghan Armed Forces had 39 regiments comprising various types of troops, includingcombined arms,artillery,military engineering,sapper regiments,military communications, Air Force and Air Defense regiments, territorial troops, and rear army regiments. These are the known regiments:
Unknown regiments
The Armed Forces of the DRA had separate battalions, divisions, and squadrons in every branch that were non-divisional, including special troops and units in the rear of the army.
Source:[42]
By 1985, the structure of the irregular forces had changed to include self-defense groups formed at enterprises:[43]
As General S. M. Mikhailov noted, by 1989, the Afghan army was at a fairly high level of combat capability in terms of military training of personnel, equipment, and weapons.
“What is missing is unity, this is the main problem. The second reason for the difficulties is associated with very weak work among the population, for attracting the broad masses to the side of the people's power".[45]
Under theDemocratic Republic of Afghanistan, weapons deliveries by the Soviets increased and includedMi-24 helicopters,MiG-21 fighter aircraft,ZSU-23-4 Shilka andZSU-57-2 anti-aircraft self-propelled mounts,MT-LB armored personnel carriers,BM-27 Uragan andBM-21 Grad multiple-launch rocket systems and9K52 Luna-M andScud missile launchers.[46][47]
On February 1, 1986, the staffing of military equipment and personnel of theAir Force and Air Defense was:[22]
At its peak, the Afghan Air Force included:
Excluding the armed formations ofSarandoy, the armed forces numbered 160,000 people.[51] Later Western reports indicated an active strength of around 515,000 by 1990.[52][53]
Equipment:[22]
There is no exact information about the number of armed formations ofSarandoy (brigades, regiments and separate battalions) in the last year of the existence of theRepublic of Afghanistan. At its peak, Sarandoy had about 115,000 personnel.[54]
Regular army units were armed with Soviet-made weapons and military equipment. Most DRA soldiers were equipped with eitherAKM andAK-74 assault rifles.[55] In the early 1980s, civilian self-defense forces were equipped with olderPPSh-41 submachine guns, which were phased out for more modern rifles closer to the regime's end.[56]
The territorial self-defense units were armed mainly with light small arms, including obsolete and captured models. For example, in February 1986, the tribalmilitia battalion under the command of Usman-bek from Kakis-nau, which provided protection for the Sarok-Kalas-nau road in the province ofHerat, had 300 fighters. Half of these fighters were armed withKalashnikov assault rifles, and the rest with aMakarov or olderTokarev pistols. The militia also hadPPSh-41 submachine guns and rifles of various systems, along with three R-104 radio stations, eleven R-105 radios, one jeep, and four trucks.[57]
Since April 27, 1980, the official publication of theDRA's Ministry of Defense was a newspaper titled “د سرتیري حقیقت” (Soldier's Truth). Around fifteen thousand copies were in circulation.[58] Additionally, theMinistry of Defense had its own annual publication (in bothPashto andDari) titled “دا اردو مجله” (The Military Magazine, also referred to as “De Revue Militaire” inFrench), which began in 1939 under theKingdom of Afghanistan.[59]
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