A new newsletter I am receiving,
Rare Historical Photos shows photos of the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan 1979-1989.
The Soviet invasion and repercussions on the Soviet régime is discussed with these photos. I'll only share a couple.
I learned that the CIA gave the Afghan militants (the Mujamujahideen) soviet weapons obtained from various sources, including a corrupt unit of the Soviet Army in Afghanistan.)
Soviet weaponry depicted on a carpet woven by Afghan refugees.
A rare picture of Soviet soldiers with Afghan men. One soldier bitterly recalled being told that “we were helping the Afghan people to end feudalism and build a wonderful socialist society.”
Some of the mujahedin groups financed by the CIA were radical Islamists that would later form groups designated as “terrorist organizations.” Although Osama bin Laden fought against the Soviets, it is disputed whether he ever received U.S. assistance.
(below) An air strike shatters an Afghan village. Much of the fighting was a brutal back-and-forth with mujahedin ambushes on Soviet convoys followed by Soviet aircraft wiping out villages near the sites of the attacks.
(Photo credit: Afghan Media Resource Center via RFE/RL).
