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Spillover of the Soviet–Afghan war in Pakistan
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The spillover of the Soviet–Afghan War in Pakistan refers to a series of airstrikes, ground skirmishes and other military confrontations which took place inside Pakistan as a result of the Soviet-Afghan war.
 | This article's lead section may be too short to adequately summarize the key points. (September 2025) |
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After the Soviet deployment, Pakistan's military ruler General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq started accepting financial aid from the Western powers to aid the Mujahidin.[14] In 1981, following the election of US President Ronald Reagan, aid for the Mujahidin through Zia's Pakistan significantly increased, mostly due to the efforts of Texas Congressman Charlie Wilson and CIA officer Gust Avrakotos.[15][16]
The Pakistan Navy were involved in the covert war coordinating foreign weapons being funnelled into Afghanistan. Some of the navy's high-ranking admirals were responsible for storing those weapons in their depots.
ISI allocated the highest percentage of covert aid to warlord Gulbuddin Hekmatyar leader of the Hezb-e-Islami faction. This was based on his record as an effective anti-Soviet military commander in Afghanistan.[17] The other reason was that Hekmatyar and his men had "almost no grassroots support and no military base inside Afghanistan", and thus more "dependent on Zia-ul-Haq's protection and financial largesse" than other Mujahiden factions. In retaliation for Pakistan's assistance to the insurgents, the KHAD Afghan security service, under leader Mohammad Najibullah, carried out (according to the Mitrokhin Archives and other sources) a large number of operations against Pakistan. In 1987, 127 incidents resulted in 234 deaths in Pakistan. In April 1988, an ammunition depot outside the Pakistani capital of Islamabad was blown up killing 100 and injuring more than 1000 people. The KHAD and KGB were suspected in the perpetration of these acts.[18] Soviet fighters and Democratic Republic of Afghanistan Air Force bombers occasionally bombed Pakistani villages along the Pakistani-Afghan border. The target of Soviet and Afghan fighters and bombers were Afghan refugees camps on Pakistan side of the border.[19] These attacks are known to have caused at least 300 civilian deaths and extensive damage. Sometimes they got involved in shootings with the Pakistani jets defending the airspace.[20]
Pakistan actively trained rebels the mujahidin rebels, which resulted in Afghan communist leaders ordering airstrikes in Pakistan at rebel targets.[21] Many secular Pakistanis outside of the government were worried about fundamentalists guerrillas in Afghanistan, such as Hekmatyar, receiving such a high amount of aid, would lead to bolster conservative Islamic forces in Pakistan and its military.[22]
Pakistan also provided volunteers who went to Afghanistan in order to fight, their numbers estimated at around 40,000 by General Mirza Aslam Beg, a former chief of the Pakistan Army.[23]
Pakistan took in millions of Afghan refugees (mostly Pashtun) fleeing the Soviet occupation. Although the refugees were controlled within Pakistan's largest province, Balochistan under then-martial law ruler General Rahimuddin Khan, the influx of so many refugees – believed to be the largest refugee population in the world [24]– spread into several other regions.
All of this had a heavy impact on Pakistan and its effects continue to this day. Pakistan, through its support for the Mujahidin, played a significant role in the eventual withdrawal of Soviet military personnel from Afghanistan.Remove ads
Timeline
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1979
On 18 March 1979, a Soviet APC carrying troops entered Pakistani territory, demanding that three Afghan personnel who had defected be handed over to them. However, Pakistani authorities refused, prompting the Soviets to launch 123 rounds of artillery fire from T-55 tanks in Torkham, forcing Pakistan to hand over the three Afghan defectors, two days later on 20 March.[25]
1980
On 1 March, PAF intercepted a Soviet Ilyushin Il-76 aircraft and escorted it out of Pakistani airspace, back to Afghanistan.[26][27]
On 4 May 1980, a building operated by Afghan Mujahideen in Pakistan was bombed, 11 people were killed.[28]
On 25 November, eight people were caught and charged with spying on behalf of the Soviet Union by Pakistani authorities.[29]
1981
The far-left militant faction al-Zulfikar hijacked the Pakistan International Airlines Flight 326 with support from KHAD and KGB on 14 March 1981 and the ensuing hostage crisis ended with the release of 50 prisoners by Pakistan.[30][31][32]
On 26 May 1981, a DRAAF Mil Mi-8 helicopter was hijacked from Qandahar and landed at the PAF Base Samungli.[33]
On 8 September 1981, Afghan troops raided the village of Shabbaz Killy inside Pakistan to confiscate weaponry, wounding five people in the process. The Pakistani government claimed that Afghan troops came in trucks and APCs and retreated before the arrival of Pakistani Forces.[34]
On 2 December 1981, a helicopter gunship fired by Afghan forces killed seven people in Balochistan. On 18 December, six Afghan helicopters again attacked a refugee camp, this time in South Waziristan, killing a child and destroying two houses.[35]
1983
In May 1983, the No. 17 Squadron while operating from Samungli Airbase along with the No. 23 Squadron "Talons" was put on air defence alert after a surge in aerial intrusions by Afghan and Soviet warplanes during the Soviet-Afghan war. It performed 682 CAP missions and 238 hot scrambles. Unfortunately, the record of the aerial interceptions and other events was not maintained. [36]
On 17 September 1983, Afghan MIG-21s violated Pakistani airspace with the possible aim of targeting Mujahideen camps. The aircraft conducted a bombing raid in Parachinar, killing a man. Pakistan condemned the attack and summoned Afghan officials. A protest was held in Parachinar against the attack during the Islamic holy event of Eid ul adha.[37][38]
1984
In 1984, leftist factions within the Pakistani army planned a coup to overthrow the military dictatorship of Zia and establish a populist regime in Pakistan. The coup was foiled by the ISI.[39]
On 16 July, an Afghan Mi-25 helicopter defected and landed in Miranshah.[40]
On 14 August 1984, three Afghan aircraft bombed Kum Alizai, near the village of Nafti Kot killing one and injuring five women.[41] The next day, on 15 August, two Afghan jets again violated Pakistani airspace dropping two bombs over Pewarkotal region, killing 13 people and injuring five.[42]
On 2 October 1984, Afghanistan denied the Pakistani claim of its forces conducting a bombardment campaign in Tari Mangal which had killed 33 people and injured 48.[43]
1985
On 24 January, Pakistani authorities said that 2 Afghan aircraft had violated Pakistani airspace for three days near Arandu and had dropped two bombs, but caused no damage.[44]
On 14 April, Pakistan claimed that two Afghan jets violated Pakistani airspace near Chitral and dropped two bombs, they also accused Afghanistan of further violations near Arandu. The accusations, however, were rejected by Afghanistan.[45]
A POW uprising took place on 26–27 April 1985 in Badaber, when Soviet and Afghan POWs revolted at the fortress of Badaber where they were being held captive. The Jamaat-e-Islami forces and the Pakistani Army's XI Corps suppressed the rebellion. Most of the POWs were killed in the uprising while inflicting heavy casualties on the mujahideen and Pakistani forces and also managing to blow 3 BM-21 Grad MLRS, 2 million rounds of ammunition and thousands of rockets.[46][47][48][49][50]
On 19 August 1985, 4 Afghan aircraft bombed the village of Kewas inside Pakistan, killing eight and wounding twelve, and five houses were also destroyed.[51]
1986
On 28 January, 4 Afghan Mi-24 helicopters violated Pakistani airspace and bombed Parachinar, killing one person and injuring 13.[52]
On 31 January, 2 Afghan helicopters violated Pakistani airspace 3 times near Parachinar, dropping bombs which injured 3 women.[53]
The No. 15 squadron intercepted a couple of Soviet Mig-21s in February 1986 but were ordered not to engage them.[54]
On 17 May 1986, PAF with 2 F-16s intercepted one Afghan Su-22M3K which had violated Pakistani airspace near Parachinar. Squadron Leader Hameed Qadri shot down one Su-22 as it was retreating towards the Afghan border by firing AIM-9L missiles within the range of six miles. In a PAF account, he shot down another Su-22 while it was retreating towards the Afghan border, after the execution of a high yo-yo maneuver for gaining the offensive position and fired a three-second burst which resulted in the interception of the second Su-22, although the Afghan government accepted the loss of one aircraft only. Qadri confronted Mig fighters one month later but no engagements were made.[55]
In the area of operations of the 15th Spetsnaz Brigade, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Babushkin, repeated mujahideen attacks inflicted heavy losses on Spetsnaz troops. The Mujahideen, using Krer as a supply base, conducted major attacks including the destruction of an entire company in February 1985, leaving only two survivors and an ambush on a ~50 man recon team in August 1985. However, all combat within five miles of the Pakistan-Afghanistan border was prohibited to avoid an international incident. During a mission, the spetsnaz captured an Afghan mujahid who provided Intel about the Krer camp and the spetsnaz fomented a plan to destroy it. Krer camp was situated along the route to Bajaur, a major mujahideen supply hub in Pakistan. It was garrisoned by Asma bin Zaid's regiment of the Abdul Rab Rasul Sayyaf faction with a strength of 400 personnel and commanded by Commander Asadullah. Although usually understaffed, it was heavily equipped with small arms and heavy weaponry. The Soviet order of battle included the 15th Spetsnaz Brigade's 334th and 154th battalions with direct support from the 66th Motorized Rifle Brigade and figments of the DRA Army, Sarandoy and KhAD. Their main mission was to intercept the supplies from Pakistan. Firstly, a recon raid was conducted against Krer's defenses. Two reconnaissance companies of the 334th Battalion were dispatched. After climbing the canyon, they saw two forward positions. A simultaneous assault was planned and the force was divided into 2 assault and one support group, but due to terrain, the plan was changed. Firstly, one group attacked and overran the accessible position, following which the other position's defenders arose to observe and were also overrun. Mujahideen Maps and plans were recovered, weapons were seized and destroyed. The attack force then withdrew with fire support from the support contingent. The main attack was planned using this information with the date being set for 30 March 1986 with the 334th advancing from Asadabad using APCs, crossing the river and climbing via the same route as the recon force under cover from the APCs. The 154th Battalion using its own APCs advanced from Jalalabad accompanied by artillery with only the personnel crossing the river linking with the first force on Spina ridge in the morning, destroying the camp and withdrawing at night. However, due to a hepatitis outbreak, the 154th could only supply ~150 personnel for the mission. On the day of the offensive in the afternoon, Commander Asadullah observed a column of Soviet/DRA forces heading to attack. Heavy fighting broke out following the offloading of troops by the APCs and night fell. The 334th got lost in the darkness and climbed the wrong ridge, while the main ridge was heavily attacked by mujahideen. The Spetsnaz were able to flank and take mujahideen positions out using grenades but both sides suffered high losses. The 334th also engaged with a 16-man mujahideen group, not part of the Krer regiment, returning from Pakistan to Pech valley. They were warned of the Soviet presence by a ferry operator while attempting to cross the river, and they decided to return to Pakistan, forming a defensive perimeter for the night. At 10 PM, they observed Spetsnaz soldiers and initiated fire with Spetsnaz returning fire. Mujahideen withdrew 300m up the hill and struck their old position with Spetsnaz in it and systematically continued repeating this strategy inflicting losses. The 154th meanwhile arrived at the riverbank on 30 March in the morning, crossing the river in 4 hours. By nightfall, they started climbing up the mountains but the DRA forces faced difficulty in doing so, due to a lack of fitness and insubordination but were forced to climb under the threat of abandonment. The 154th reached Spina ridge by the morning, undetected. The planning of 154th's company and brigade commanders was interrupted by Azan of Fajr, following which its 3rd company attacked a mujahideen forward assault position and the rest of the battalion moved down the crest seizing many more positions and raining fire on mujahideen down the crest. The 1st company detonated approaches from Pakistan, infiltrated Pakistani territory and dug 700m inside Pakistan with the area being under full spetsnaz control. The 16-man group which had engaged the 334th was still conducting a systematic retreat into Pakistan, observed the signal rockets of the 154th and immediately retreated into Pakistani territory. After sunrise, ~40 mujahideen attacked the 1st company's positions inside Pakistan but were repelled, resulting in 15 dead. Around 40 minutes later, a mujahideen relief force, traveling on several trucks from Bajaur, charged at the 1st company's positions after being informed of the situation by Commander Asadullah. The Spetsnaz called for artillery strikes which slowed down but could not halt the mujahideen advance. Ultimately, the spetsnaz called artillery strikes on their own positions, inflicting casualties on mujahideen while being battered themselves. The surviving spetsnaz withdrew and the mujahideen occupied the heights, now firing directly at the 154th battalion's command post. By 10:45, the 1st and 2nd companies were rendered combat ineffective and the 3rd was under high stress. The 334th battalion was at a lower position and was faced with a large Mujahideen assault, prompting the brigade commander to call in a medevac helicopter, making his covert unauthorized operation known to the high command. The helicopter, however, was unable to land due to heavy combat. The 1st Company had been completely overrun by a few mujahideen and the main mujahideen force had infiltrated into Krer, occupying heights and raining fire on Spetsnaz. Commander Asadullah's six-personnel team killed the Soviet officer in the 1st company's command center. Ultimately, Soviet gunship helicopters arrived at the scene, being guided by wounded troops inside an adobe, who were besieged by mujahideen forces. Targets were given but the gunships did not fire as the Battle was on Pakistani soil. After about half an hour, a gunship agreed to strike. The building's roof was cleared by the gunships and the few surviving spetsnaz were able to evacuate. Two companies of the 334th carried the dead and wounded of the 154th. The nearest helicopter landing site was at Hill 1917, 10 km away, controlled by the mujahideen. The Spetsnaz company pushed forward as artillery and air strikes continued. On 1 April, the 66th Motorized Rifle Brigade's personnel landed via helicopters and, along with the 154th battalion, found MIAs, KIAs and WIAs, but two Spetsnaz were left behind. Two patrol parties of the 334th entered Pakistan and briefly captured an abandoned post. The two Spetsnaz who were left behind hid in a cave and were killed by mujahideen after a prolonged fight.[56][57][58][59][60] The Pakistan Army Special Service Group was alleged to be involved in the battle, but the Russians dismissed the claim.[61]
On 2 April 1986, an incident took place during the Second Battle of Zhawar when, instead of Zhawar, the 38th Commando Brigade of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan arrived near Miram Shah in Pakistan with a force of 120 soldiers and eight helicopters. After arrival, the commandos did not observe any signs of combat amidst the darkness of the night. Thinking the force had lost its way, they asked the command post for signals in the form of flares. At 3 A.M, Afghan artillery fired a flare on Dawri Gar, which the assault group commander reported to be about 15 kilometers from their location. A second flare was launched five kilometers south and the distance was reported to be ten kilometers. Command post relayed that the air assault group had accidentally crossed the border and landed near Miranshah, 5 kilometers inside Pakistan and immediate withdrawal preparations were initiated. Following the failure of the air assault, the Soviet Air Forces bombed Mujahideen positions, following which the Mujahideen attacked the landing sites. A single group of Afghan commandos held out for three days facing constant mujahideen assaults, but was finally overrun. All six Mi-8 helicopters and all 120 commandos were surrounded and captured. Following this, hundreds of Pakistani SSG personnel were deployed to Zhawar, army officers were dispatched to Zhawar and attempted to take down Afghan and Soviet aircraft using English blowpipes but were not successful in doing so; a Pakistani officer and an NCO were injured as a result of Soviet airstrikes. Pakistani forces fired a total of 14 surface-to-air missiles on Soviet aircraft.[62][63][64][65][66][67][68]
In late April 1986, four people were killed and 14 were wounded in a bomb explosion in the Landi Kotal bazaar, in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Pakistan blamed the Afghan secret police for planting the bomb.[69]
On 18 May, Pakistan shot down a Mig-21 and damaged another aircraft while two others managed to flee back to Afghanistan.[70]
On 26 May, Pakistan claimed that Afghanistan shelled 4 posts by 80-100 bombs in the Mohmand area, near the place where the Mig 21 was shot down. The posts were damaged but no casualties were inflicted on Pakistani forces.[71]
1987
In 1987, KhAD attempted a car bombing on the US Consulate in Peshawar, which ended up killing over 30 people.[72]
On 27 February, Afghanistan bombed the villages of Saigai and Ghulam Mohammad with eight aircraft, destroying 150 shops, killing 35 people and leaving more than 200 wounded.[73][74]
On 3 March, Afghan jets bombed refugee camps at the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, killing 2 people.[75]
On 23 March 1987, an Afghan raid at Tari Mangal aimed at destroying gun shops selling arms to the Mujahideen, killed 80 people.[76]
On 31 March, an Afghan Antonov An-26 was shot down near Parachinar by a Pakistani F-16 using air to air missiles.[77]
On 16 April 1987, Squadron Leader Badar Islam from the Tail Choppers Squadron shot down an Afghan Su-22 with an AIM-9L Sidewinder.[78]
On 2 May, Afghanistan shot down one Pakistani F-16 near Khost after a warning fire; Pakistan accepted the loss of the aircraft,[79] attributing it to friendly fire.[80]
On 3 May, Pakistan claimed that 7 Afghan aircraft bombed Arandu, wounding five people. On 4 May, Afghan aircraft conducted a targeted strike on Ghulam Khan Killi, who was killed along with two children, and four were injured.[81]
On 14 July, two vehicles loaded with RDX drove into the Bohri Bazar in Karachi and parked. The cars detonated at intervals of 30 minutes from one another. The 1987 Karachi car bombing resulted in 67 people being killed and left 300 injured.[82][83][84]
On 4 August 1987, Squadron Leader Athar Bukhari from the No. 14 Squadron shot down a Soviet Su-25 near Miranshah, piloted by the Soviet pilot, Colonel Alexander Rutskoy. Rutskoy was ejected safely, but was captured by local people and was briefly held as a POW in Islamabad.[85][86] The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency intervened to save him to avoid interfering with the Geneva Accords and the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan.[87] He was later handed back to the Soviets on 16 August 1988; this was his third time being downed as he had managed to eject and escape the earlier two times.[78]
On 3 October 1987, two Afghan Mil Mi-4 helicopters defected to Pakistan, landing in Chitral. Although the helicopters were returned to Afghanistan, the crews were granted political asylum.[88]
According to a report by the US Defense Department, approximately 90% of the estimated 777 acts of international terrorism committed worldwide in 1987 took place in Pakistan.[89]
1988
Pakistan Army Special Service Group reportedly engaged in armed battles with the Soviet paratroopers during Operation Magistral, although the reports remained unconfirmed.[90] When the Battle for Hill 3234 concluded on 8 January 1988, the Soviet paratroopers found that the Afghan mujahideen actually wore the black uniforms with rectangular black-yellow-red stripes, and suspected to be Army Special Service Group personnel; Pakistan's government officially denied their involvement. The American author, Aukai Collins, identified the elements as "Black Storks" who crossed the border to join the Afghan mujahideen–a claim also backed by American author, David Campbell. : 60–61 [91]
On 27 February, the Afghan Air Force struck Matasanga and Khardand camps, 180 miles west of Islamabad, killing 31 and injuring 49 more.[92]
The Ojhri Camp disaster on 8 April 1988, caused by the explosion of an ammunition depot, resulted in the death of 93 people. Zia-ul-Haq dissolved the parliament after the incident. The United States alleged that the Soviet Union and the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan were involved in the incident.[93][94][95][96]
On 7 September, PAF shot down an Afghan Mig 25 which had conducted a bombing raid, killing one and injuring two people.[97]
On 12 September 1988, Flight Lieutenant Khalid shot down two Mig-23. On 3 November 1988, Flight Lieutenant Khalid Mehmood shot down an Afghan Su-22.[98][99][100][101]
On 3 November, Khalid Mahmood shot down an Afghan Su-22 by firing two AIM-9L missiles.[55][102][103]
On 7 November, an Afghan aircraft bombed a refugee camp inside Pakistan, killing two people in Kotri village.[104]
On 19 November, Pakistan shot down an Afghan cargo plane that had lost direction and flown to Jalalabad. Thirty people were killed on board.[105][106]
Between May 1986 and November 1988,[107] the PAF's newly acquired F-16s had shot down at least eight intruding aircraft from Afghanistan. The first three of these (one Su-22, one probable Su-22, and one An-26) were shot down by two pilots from No. 9 Squadron. Pilots of No. 14 Squadron destroyed the remaining five intruders (two Su-22s, two MiG-23s, and one Su-25).[108] Most of these kills were by the AIM-9 Sidewinder, but at least one (a Su-22) was destroyed by cannon fire. Pakistani Flight Lieutenant Khalid Mahmoud is credited with three of these kills.[109][110]
By 1988, KGB and KhAD agents were able to penetrate deep inside Pakistan and carry out attacks on mujahideen sanctuaries and guerrilla bases.[111]
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Disinformation
The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan faced criticism from the global community, for which the KGB launched Operation Torkham to neutralise the negative view of the Soviets and to distract attention from the war in Afghanistan, which involved disinformation. Vasiliy Mitrokhin stated that Yuri Andropov, the chairman of the KGB approved a plan which included information warfare against the Pakistani military and its involvement in Afghanistan, impeding relations between India and Pakistan . According to a KGB resident in Delhi, war between the two countries if it led to the halting of Pakistani support for the Mujahideen to keep Babrak Karmal in power, was seen as beneficial by the Soviets.[112] Through the UN, the message was to be conveyed to the Iranian representatives that Pakistan was willing to grant the United States bases in Baluchistan, which was close to Iran. The Chukhrov working group proposed plans to create an independent Azad Kashmir separate from India and Pakistan and to set up a government in exile for Balochistan; however, the plan was postponed due to complexities.[113]
References
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