The Panjshir Valley 1980–86: The Lion Tames the Bear in Afghanistan (Campaign, 369)

"The Panjshir Valley 1980-86, The Lion Tames the Bear in Afghanistan" was an appropriate title. Those of us who followed the war back then through such magazines as "Soldier of Fortune (SOF)" or enjoyed such movies such as "Rambo III" and "The Beast" will want to check this out. For my younger friends, the Soviets invaded Afghanistan in 1980 and installed their puppet as head of the government. Though they never had the intention of staying, the Russians were sucked into a war that has been compared to the US involvement in Vietnam as the various factions and tribes began to fight the invaders who were viewed as a common enemy. The Panjshir valley was just one area of that ongoing conflict. It was through that valley that supplies moved to the various government outposts and towns. It is a strategic roadway some 150 km long that leads to the capital at Kabul. During the course of the war, some seven subsequent lieutenant-generals of the Soviet 40th Army pitted their wits against one Ahmad Shah Massoud, a real patriot and brilliant tactician, who not only understood warfare as pertaining to mujahideen capabilities, but tribal politics as well. Time after time the Soviet military might rolled through the valley floor driving off resistance fighters, only to have them disperse and pop up somewhere else wreaking havoc. Their tactics of both sides were explained in this book. Weapons are mentioned naturally. The AK-74 is mentioned in passing. Robert Brown, editor of SOF, often traveled to world hot spots for the latest intel. He was one of the first to report on the AK-74s as captured by the mujahideen. This bullet is smaller than the AK-47 round. It has a high velocity and tumbles on penetration due to a hollow cavity in the bullet. Some see the logic in a lighter bullet. "We can carry more." And everybody is now a machine gunner! Sorry, I am getting off track here. The thing was, the tribesmen armed with WWII British bolt action Enfield's had a longer range, especially when firing from high ground. In the beginning of the war, many still carried muzzle loaders handed down through the generations. The AK-74 rounds served a purpose, as did the butterfly bomblets. A wounded tribesman would have to be carried over the mountains to Pakistan. Not mentioned here, but SOF reported boobytrapped toys that were left in rebel areas for children to find, for the same above reason. Such was the nature of the war at times. Maps and the usual photos and illustrations are provided.

Between 1980 and 1986, the Soviet Army and its Afghan allies battered away at the stronghold of rebel commander Ahmad Shah Massoud in the Panjshir Valley of northwest Afghanistan. This brutal duel become a microcosm of the larger Soviet effort to subdue Afghanistan and impose its preferred governance. In the end, a clever and brave guerilla leader outlasted the Soviet empire. Author Mark Galeotti has the story in this new Osprey Campaign series book.The author sticks resolutely to his narrow focus, illuminating how sheer firepower often got lost in the vastness of Afghanistan when using in pursuit of illusive guerillas. His narrative is remarkably factual and fair to both sides, although the lessons learned are not limited to these combatants. The text includes a nice selection of period photographs and some excellent modern battle diagrams and illustrations. Well recommended to students of the conflict.

thank you

A very informative and interesting.

A bit of a let down, not as good as other books in the series

It's a book about the panjshir valley fight between 1980-1986.The title is pretty much self explanatory...And the book is good, sourced, quite neutral, easy to read. Totally recommend if you wanna read about this specific part of the Afghan war.