Word: lasts
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Dates: during 1980-1980
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...last fall, some 22 of the country's 28 provinces were said to be in rebel hands. Amin, by now Taraki's Prime Minister, cracked down with repressive measures, including the execution of some 2,000 political detainees and the imprisonment of some 30,000 others. By the time Amin toppled Taraki and took over completely, the Afghan armed forces themselves were demoralized by purges and defections to the rebels, and clearly were hard put to contain the rebellion...
After General Ivan Pavlovsky, head of Soviet ground forces, toured Afghanistan last fall and assessed the Afghan government's predicament as close to hopeless, the Soviets became convinced of the need for drastic steps. According to former Ambassador to Kabul Robert Neumann, the Russians had three choices: 1) "To let Afghanistan go, in which case the government would have fallen within a week." That would have cost the Russians credibility in Eastern Europe and elsewhere. 2) A "massive Russian military infusion," in which the Soviets would try to squelch the rebellion. Commented Neumann: "This option opens up the real...
According to Neumann, the Soviets decided on a combination of the last two options. In the event of a failure by Karmal, Neumann has no doubt that the Soviets will be prepared to deploy their own forces. Indeed, the large Soviet buildup of perhaps 50,000 troops on Afghanistan's borders was a clear indication of the Soviets' own uncertainty about Karmal's chances...
Instead, Karmal, a 50-year-old bachelor, went into hiding with other members of the Parcham group. Among them was his longtime mistress, Anahita Ratebzad, who had been packed off as Ambassador to Yugoslavia. When Taraki was overthrown-and killed-by Hafizullah Amin last September, Karmal was still underground. Diplomats speculated that the Soviets stashed him away in an Eastern European capital as a sort of strongman-in-reserve. As one expert puts it, "The Russians were keeping [him] on ice until [he was] needed...
Nevertheless, for all the uncertainties, the all-parties agreement reached in London was showing signs of resilience. On the international front, the settlement continued to gain acceptance following the United Nations Security Council vote ending the economic sanctions it had imposed against Rhodesia in 1966. Last week the guerrillas' allies in the frontline African states (Zambia, Mozambique, Angola, Tanzania and Botswana) underscored their own commitment to a durable peace. In quick succession, each of them ended its sanctions and reopened its borders to the embattled neighbor...