Soviet–Afghan War

Period

December 1979 – February 1989

Sides

Soviet Union & DRA vs Mujahideen

Battles

13

The Soviet–Afghan War took place in Afghanistan from December 1979 to February 1989. Marking the beginning of the 47-year-long Afghan conflict, it saw the Soviet Union and the Communist-led Afghan military fight against the rebelling Afghan mujahideen. While backed by various countries and organizations, the majority of the mujahideen's external support came from Pakistan, the United States, the United Kingdom, China, Iran, and the Arab states of the Persian Gulf, in addition to a large influx of foreign fighters known as the Afghan Arabs. American and British involvement on the side of the mujahideen escalated the Cold War, ending a short period of relaxed Soviet Union–United States relations.

Sources: Wikipedia — Soviet–Afghan War · CC BY-SA 4.0

Battles 13

1. December 1979

   Operation Storm-333

   Operation Storm-333 was a military raid executed by the Soviet Union in Afghanistan on 27 December 1979. Special forces and airborne troops stormed the heavily fortified Tajbeg Palace in Kabul and assassinated Afghan leader Hafizullah Amin, a Khalqist of the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA) who had taken power in the Saur Revolution of April 1978. It was the start of the Soviet–Afghan War.

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2. January 1980 – February 1989

   Siege of Khost

   The eleven-year siege of Khost took place throughout the nine-year Soviet–Afghan War in the 1980s and the subsequent Afghan civil war in the 1990s. Its airstrip's 3 km runway served as a base for helicopter operations by Soviet forces.

   View on the mapWikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

3. April 1980 – June 1985

   Panjshir offensives (Soviet–Afghan War)

   The Panjshir offensives were a series of battles from 1980 to 1985 between the Soviet Army, the Afghan Armed Forces and groups of Afghan mujahideen under Ahmad Shah Massoud. The goal of these offensives was control of the strategic Panjshir Valley in Afghanistan, during the Soviet–Afghan War of the 1980s.

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4. August 1983 – January 1984

   Siege of Urgun

   The siege of Urgun was a military engagement that took place during the Soviet–Afghan War. Between August 1983 and January 1984, Mujahideen forces laid siege to the town of Urgun, which was defended by a garrison of troops loyal to the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan. The mujahideen tried to take the town by storm using tanks, but despite making initial progress, they were eventually driven back and the siege was lifted.

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5. April 1985

   Badaber uprising

   The Badaber uprising was an armed rebellion by Soviet and Afghan prisoners of war who were being held at the Badaber fortress near Peshawar, Pakistan. The prisoners fought the Afghan Mujahideen of the Jamiat-e Islami party in an attempt to escape.

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6. April 1985

   Battle of Maravar Pass

   The Battle of Maravar Pass was an operation by the 334th Detached Spetsnaz group in the Afghan villages of Sangam and Daridam on April 21, 1985, during the Soviet–Afghan War. Mujahideen forces ambushed the Soviet force in Maravar Gorge, cutting off its 1st company and inflicting heavy casualties. As Soviet reinforcements arrived, the mujahideen covered the civilian evacuation of the gorge and successfully carried out a fighting withdrawal.

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7. September 1985

   First Battle of Zhawar

   The First Battle of Zhawar was fought during the Soviet–Afghan War between Afghan Army units, and their allies the Soviet Union, against mujahideen groups of Haqqani and Khalis. Their objective was to destroy the Mujahideen logistic base situated at Zhawar, 3 kilometers from the Durand line.

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8. February 1986 – April 1986

   Second Battle of Zhawar

   The Second Battle of Zhawar was a significant engagement that took place during the Soviet-Afghan War. It pitted Afghan Army units, supported by the Soviet Union, against mujahideen faction led by Jalaluddin Haqqani. The objective of the battle was to destroy the mujahideen's logistical base located in Zhawar, just three kilometers from the Durand Line.

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9. August 1986

   Operation Trap

   Operation Trap was a code name of a large-scale Soviet offensive operation during the Soviet-Afghan War which targeted the mujahideen garrison of the Kokari-Sharshari fortified supply base. The active stage of the operation was launched on August 18, 1986 to clear out the rebel positions and the surrounding areas with the intent of breaking a mujahideen logistics chain in the northwest triangle of Herat Province in the Gulran District.

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10. May 1987

    Battle of Jaji

    The Battle of Jaji was fought during the Soviet–Afghan War between Soviet Army units, and their allies of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan against Maktab al-Khidamat in Paktia Province. This battle occurred in May 1987, during the first stage of withdrawal of Soviet forces from Afghanistan. The objective was to relieve a besieged garrison at Ali Sher, and cut off supply lines to the Mujahideen from Pakistan. The battle is primarily known for the participation of the Arab foreign fighter and future founder of al-Qaeda, Osama bin Laden, who acquired his reputation as a "divine" jihadist warrior as a result of the Mujahideen victory during this battle. Bin Laden led a group of some 50 Arab foreign fighters during this battle, of which at least 13 were killed in action.

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11. May 1987 – June 1987

    Battle of Arghandab (1987)

    The Battle of Arghandab was an offensive launched by Afghan government forces, supported by Soviet troops, against mujahideen strongholds in the Arghandab District of Kandahar Province, Afghanistan, in 1987. The operation ended in failure, and the government forces withdrew after suffering heavy losses.

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12. November 1987 – January 1988

    Operation Magistral

    Operation Magistral was a Soviet Army military operation during the Soviet–Afghan War that began in late November 1987 and ended in early January 1988.

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13. January 1988

    Battle for Hill 3234

    The Battle for Hill 3234 was a successful attack battle fought by the 9th Company of the 345th Independent Guards Airborne Regiment, Soviet Airborne Troops, part of Operation Magistral, supported by the Afghan Army's 15th Tank Brigade, 8th, 11th, 12th, 214th, 25th Infantry Division and the 37th Commando Battalion, in Afghanistan against a force of some 250 Mujahideen rebels who were supported by several Pakistani mercenaries in early January 1988. Two of the soldiers killed, Vyacheslav Aleksandrov and Andrey Melnikov, were posthumously awarded the Gold Star of the Hero of the Soviet Union. All of the paratroopers in this battle were given the Order of the Red Banner and Order of the Red Star.

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Earlier and later events nearby

1. 326 BCBattle of the Hydaspes
2. c. AD 30Rise of the Kushan Empire
3. c. AD 127Kanishka's reign and the flowering of Kushan Buddhism
4. December 1979 – February 1989Soviet–Afghan WarThis page
5. 1992–1997Tajikistani Civil War
6. 2001–2021War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)

Who ruled this land

States that held this place in the historical borders data (Cliopatria). Years are approximate, as fine as the data's snapshots (every few years to a century). Tap to open the map for that year.

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