Najibullah Mohammad execution. Muhammad Najibullah: biography. Beginning of political activity

Mohammad Najibullah(Pashto - Mohammad Najibullh; August 6, 1947, Gardez, Kingdom of Afghanistan - September 27, 1996, Kabul, Afghanistan) - Afghan statesman, diplomat, president of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan (DRA) in 1987-1992. Chairman of the Revolutionary Council of the DRA (1987), General Secretary of the Central Committee of the ruling PDPA party (1986-1992), Head of the State Security Service (KHAD) (1980-1986).

He gained fame as head of the KHAD for his tough methods and good organizational skills, which is why he attracted the attention of the Soviet leadership, with whose support in 1986 he replaced the retired Karmal at the head of the DRA. Having come to power and trying to expand support for the regime among the population of Afghanistan, he initiated a policy of “national reconciliation”, declaring his readiness to create a coalition government with representatives of the Mujahideen and the PDPA’s refusal to renounce its monopoly on power. The constitution adopted in 1987 proclaimed Islam as the state religion, allowed for the application of Sharia law and no longer contained any mention of socialism or communism. These measures had limited success, and the DRA regime continued to be perceived by the population as being imposed from outside, while the Mujahideen rejected the offer of peace negotiations. Realizing his precarious position, Najibullah opposed the withdrawal of Soviet troops from the country, which, however, was completed in 1989, and the civil war continued with even greater intensity. A year after the collapse of the USSR, having lost external support and found itself in international isolation, the DRA regime was overthrown by the Mujahideen. Najibullah took refuge in the UN mission building in Kabul, where he remained until 1996, when he was captured and executed by the Taliban who seized power.

Life path

Youth

Mohammad Najibullah was born on August 6, 1947 in Kabul in the family of a civil servant, Akhtar Mohammad. By origin, he is a Pashtun from the Ahmadzai clan of the Suleimankhel tribe of the Ghilzai tribal union. His family roots are in the province of Paktia. Plastun and Adrianov in their work “Nadjibullah. Afghanistan in the grip of geopolitics” indicate the village of Milan as Najibullah’s native village. In 1964, Najibullah graduated from the Habibiya Lyceum, after which he entered the medical faculty of Kabul University. In 1965, he joined the PDPA, and since August 1971, he has been a member of the governing bodies of the legal Association of Students of Kabul University. In an interview with the Izvestia newspaper on December 29, 1989, Najibullah said about himself:

As a student, Najibullah actively participated in mass anti-government protests by the capital’s youth, for which he was arrested twice. In 1969 he was first arrested. At his trial, he was accused of “participating in illegal strikes and demonstrations,” “violating public safety and stirring up tension,” as well as “creating conditions for calling the people to revolt” and “provoking riots and clashes with the police.” In January of the following year, he was arrested again for participating in an anti-American demonstration in Kabul in connection with the visit of US Vice President Spiro Agnew to the country. In 1975, he graduated from Kabul University with a degree in gynecology. In the same year, by decision of the PDPA “Parcham” faction, he headed the Kabul provincial commission of the party to create cells and committees of the Democratic Youth Organization of Afghanistan in the capital and province.

Mohammad Najibullah led the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan from 1987 to 1992. Before that, he held a number of government positions, including serving as ambassador to Iran and leading the secret political police. After the outbreak of the civil war, Mohammad Najibullah lost power and lived for four years in the UN mission building, under the protection of this organization. During the capture of Kabul by the Taliban, he was arrested and executed.

Origin

Najibullah (translated as “respected by God”) was born in 1947 into a middle-class family belonging to the Pashtun Ahmadzai tribe. His ancestral village is located between the cities of Said Karam and Gardez. Najibullah's father Akhtar Mohammad Khan served as an Afghan trade commissioner and consul in Pakistan.

Beginning of political activity

After graduating from the lyceum, the future head of state entered the medical faculty of Kabul University. During his student years, Mohammad Najibullah became interested in politics and joined the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan, whose reference point was the Soviet Union. Thanks to his oratorical abilities, he became famous among the capital's youth and was twice imprisoned for participating in anti-government demonstrations.

Najibullah became the bodyguard and confidant of one of the leaders of the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan, Babrak Karmal. His physical strength and temperament earned him the nickname "Bull". In 1975, Najibullah graduated from the university and received a medical degree. He continued to be actively involved in political activities.

Party work

In 1978, a revolution occurred that overthrew the regime of President Daoud. The People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan seized power in the country. The Supreme governing body of the republic became the Revolutionary Council. Najibullah was among its members. Due to internal struggles, a split arose in the party. The conflict was not of an ideological nature, but was associated with the belonging of its participants to different family clans and personal hostility.

A few weeks after the revolution, in June 1978, Najibullah was appointed ambassador to Iran. According to some reports, this was done in order to remove him from Kabul. In October 1978, Najibullah, along with several other senior party figures, was accused of an anti-government conspiracy. He was dismissed from his post as ambassador and stripped of his citizenship. Mohammad Najibullah left Iran and took refuge in the Soviet Union.

Chief of State Security

In 1979, a coup took place in Afghanistan, as a result of which Babrak Karmal led the country. The change of power was organized by the government of the Soviet Union. Najibullah's exile is over. After the entry of Soviet troops into Afghanistan, he was given the opportunity to return to his homeland, where he was appointed to the post of head of the State Security Service, known by the abbreviation KHAD.

In this position, Najibullah established himself as a talented organizer. Under his leadership, the State Security Service became an exceptionally powerful police force. It had tanks and helicopters at its disposal. The organization's staff numbered about 30 thousand people. It is worth noting that numerous witnesses confirm the existence of a widespread practice of torture within the State Security Service. In addition, international human rights organizations accuse KHAD of executing suspects without trial.

Rise to power

After the election of Mikhail Gorbachev as General Secretary, the plans of the Soviet leadership regarding Afghanistan changed. The new administration sought a speedy withdrawal of troops and was prepared to try to find a compromise with the mujahideen (Afghan anti-government rebels). The leaders of the Soviet Union believed that Najibullah was capable of handling this task. He became the main candidate for the post of Secretary General of the People's Democratic Party. The Soviet leadership convinced Babrak Karmal to resign and cede the post of head of state to a Moscow-appointed successor. A new period has begun in the history of Afghanistan. The influence of the Soviet Union gradually weakened, and in the country torn by contradictions, the preconditions for a future civil war were outlined.

Attempts at national reconciliation

The new president of Afghanistan took the initiative to stop hostilities and begin dialogue between all warring parties. By his order, the National Reconciliation Committee was created. Najibullah proposed to involve reputable tribal leaders in the negotiations. He called for establishing contacts with representatives of the armed opposition groups.

As a gesture of goodwill, the government released several thousand political prisoners. The Afghan army attempted to establish a ceasefire, which, however, was unsuccessful. Najibullah lifted the ban on the activities of political parties and approached the Mujahideen leaders with a proposal to meet in Kabul to discuss the prospects for creating a coalition government. Attempts to achieve national reconciliation have generally failed. However, as a result of these initiatives, about 30 thousand armed rebels went over to the side of government forces. A large number of refugees have returned to Afghanistan from Iran and Pakistan.

Overthrow

Attempts to reach a compromise with the opposition forces led to disagreements within the ruling People's Democratic Party. Many of its senior figures did not like the idea of ​​giving up their monopoly on power. The withdrawal of Soviet troops significantly weakened the position of the Afghan government. Panic and pessimism reigned among the party elite.

The government army continued to contain the attacks of the Mujahideen, but after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Russian leadership completely stopped supplying weapons and ammunition to the Najibullah regime. This made defeat inevitable. In 1992, the head of state lost control over the internal political situation and announced his readiness to resign in order to transfer power to an interim government. He tried to leave the country on a UN plane, but was detained by military personnel who had defected to the rebels.

Death

The former president managed to take his family out of Afghanistan. Mohammad Najibullah sent his wife Fatani Gilani, three daughters and mother-in-law to India on the last plane. The overthrown ruler and his brother remained in the capital of Afghanistan. They took refuge in the UN mission building. The new authorities refused to allow them to leave the country.

In 1996, Taliban troops captured Kabul. They stormed the UN building and arrested the former President of Afghanistan and his brother. They were subjected to painful execution. Mohammad Najibullah was mutilated and shot dead. His corpse was put on public display in the center of Kabul. The same fate befell the brother of the former president. Mohammad Najibullah remained a controversial figure in the memory of the people. However, many believe that his reign was one of the most prosperous periods that the history of Afghanistan has known.

State, political and military figure Af-ga-ni-sta-na; Lieutenant General (1983).

According to ethnic when-over-lying-no-sti push-tun from Gil-zai-sko-ple-me-ni ah-mad-za-ev. Grandfather N. Gau-sud-din Jan-dad was one of the Ah-mad-zai-skih vo-j-days in Pak-tiya, father of Ah-tar Mo-ham-mad in the 1950s. for-no-mal position afg. kon-su-la in Pe-sha-va-re. After graduating from the Kha-bi-biya Lyceum, he studied medicine in 1966-75. Faculty of Ka-bul-sko-go university. Since 1965 member Na-rod-no-de-mo-kra-ti-che-skaya party Af-ga-ni-sta-na (PDPA; faction par-cham). I was arrested and in 1969-70 I was imprisoned. In 1976, secretary of the Kabul pro-vince. to the PDPA. In 1977 Central Committee of the united PDPA. After the PDPA came to power in the re-zul-ta-te April revolution of 1978, the secretary of the Kabul city ma PDPA, member. Re-vo-luz. so-ve-ta. From July 1978 to Sol in Iran. In Oct. 1978, after the establishment of par-cha-mi-stov in anti-government. for-go-re, recalled from his post to Ka-bul, but did not return to his birth. Returned to Af-ga-ni-stan at the end of December. 1979 after the introduction of owls. troops and overthrow the regime of Kh. Amin. In 1980 he was introduced into the composition of the Re-vo-luts. so-ve-ta. In 1980-86, the head of the State Service. information-formation, pre-ra-zo-van-noy in May 1986 at the Ministry of State. safety. Since 1981 member Lit-bureau of the PDPA Central Committee, from Nov. 1985 secretary, from May 4, 1986 general secretary of the PDPA Central Committee. From 30.9.1987 previous pre-zi-diu-ma Re-vo-luts. so-ve-ta.

After the approval of the Loya Jir-ge (Higher Council) of a new constitution and a new name. countries (Res-pub-li-ka Af-ga-ni-stan) 11/29/1987 elected her pre-zi-den-tom. Having led the go-su-dar-st-vo, he tried to expand the social base of the people. power, strengthen connections with the spirit-ho-ven-st, improve the situation in the private sector, pay attention ma-nie about-ble-mom and well-dam re-mes-len-ni-kov, merchants, la-voch-ni-kov, ra-bot-ni-kov koo-pe-ra-tiv -noy trade. In 1987, pro-voz-gla-sil po-li-ti-ku national. upon re-re-enactment, I tried to beat her to support her. society si-la-mi, including former. with Za-hir-sha-khom, brought serious-serious changes into the relationship with the po-le-you ko-man-di-ra- mi, ple-me-na-mi, do-bi-val-sya respect for the rights of all nationalities. In Feb. 1989 supported the initiation of you from Af-ga-ni-sta-na owls. troops. After the pre-formation of the PDPA in June 1990, the previous one was elected to the Party of the Fatherland (Va-tan). its Center. so-ve-ta. In 1989-91, us-pedestrian pro-ti-vo-dey-st-vo-val vo-ruzh. op-po-zi-tion, py-tav-shay-sya military. means to overthrow the government that is headed by them.

Under-pi-sa-nie state. sec-re-ta-rem USA J. Bey-ke-rom and min. in. Affairs of the USSR B. D. Pan-ki-nym in September. 1991 agreement on the termination of military service from January 1, 1992. according to the conflicting hundred-ro-us in Af-ga-ni-sta-not brought to de-mo-ra-li-za-tion and dis-va-lu afg. state, military and party. Up-pa-ra-ta. After grabbing the weapon. op-po-zi-tsi-ey in April. 1992 Ka-bu-la N. without-us-on-foot, tried to leave the country, and then hid in the UN Mission in Afghanistan. hundred-face-tse. On Sept. 1996 captured in the UN Mission, taking Ka-bul ta-li-ba-mi and without trial, public-personally, but executed together with his brother Ah-mad- follow and drive to the center. area of ​​the city.

Betrayed many times, Mohammad Najibullah found the strength not to betray his people and his country. The terrible execution of the former president shocked not only his supporters, but also his enemies, and outraged the entire Afghan people.

Biography

Mohammed Najibullah - statesman, from 1986 to 1992. Born in the village of Milan, near the city of Gardez, on August 6, 1947. His father Akhtar Mohammad worked at the Peshawar consulate, his grandfather was the leader of the Ahmedzai tribe. Mohammad Najibullah spent his childhood near the Pakistani-Afghan border and graduated from high school there.

In 1965, Najibullah joined the democratic party and headed the illegal democratic society of students. In 1969, he was arrested for calling the people to prepare for an uprising, participating in demonstrations and strikes. In January 1970, he was arrested again, this time for insulting the United States of America and acting contrary to the country's neutrality. During the demonstration, he and the students threw eggs at the car of Spiro Agnew, the Vice President of the United States.

First exile

In 1975, Mohammad Najibullah graduated from the medical university in Kabul, after which he focused even more on the activities of the party, in 1977 he was appointed a member of the Central Committee of the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan. After the revolution in Saur, he headed the revolutionary council and party committee in Kabul. But disagreements within the party forced him to leave the capital, Najibullah was sent to Iran as an ambassador. But in October 1978, he was removed from his post and deprived of citizenship, as a result of which Mohammad Najibullah was forced to leave for Moscow, where he hid until December 1979, until Soviet troops entered Afghanistan.

Homecoming

Returning to the country, Najibullah began to manage the security service, increasing its staff to thirty thousand employees, before which only 120 people worked in the security service. However, even here he was not allowed to work in peace; many organizations, including Amnesty International, accused him of involvement in illegal arrests, torture and human rights violations. But there was no evidence for the accusations; during his service in the Khad there was no such mass terror and extermination of his own people as during the reign of Amin.

Afghan: Mohammad Najibullah is the country's president

On November 30, 1986, Najibullah was elected president of Afghanistan. But with his coming to leadership of the country, a split began again in the party: some supported Karmal, others supported the current president. In order to somehow reconcile the warring parties, in January 1987 they adopted the Declaration “On National Reconciliation”. The declaration prescribed the end of active hostilities and the settlement of the conflict through peaceful negotiations.

In December 1989, just days after Soviet troops withdrew from Afghanistan, the Mujahideen launched an attack on Jalalabad. Mohammad Najibullah announced in the country. On March 5, 1990, the trial of the arrested Khalqists began. In response to this, the country's Minister of Defense Shahnawaz Tanay organized Hiding in one of the bunkers, Mohammad Najibullah gave the order to suppress the rebellion, and by early March the resistance was suppressed. The organizer of the mutiny fled to Pakistan, where he subsequently joined Hekmatyar’s gang.

Betrayal on all sides

In 1990, Shevardnadze proposed eliminating the Commission for Work in Afghanistan, his decision was approved, and at the same time the supply of weapons was stopped. Thus, the country was left without the support of the USSR, and with it President Najibullah Mohammad. Political science is a fickle and fickle science; the next blow was dealt to the United States. In 1991, James Baker signed a decree stopping the supply of weapons and ammunition to the conflicting parties in Afghanistan. This greatly weakened Najibullah's influence. On April 16, 1992, Najibullah handed over his post to Abdur Rahim Khatef, who became president. And already in April of the same year he organized a coup that brought the Mujahideen to power.

In the fall of 1992, generals Hekmatyar and Massoud accused each other of treason and, leaving military equipment and weapons depots, left Kabul. At the same time, the USSR liquidated its embassy in Afghanistan. Najibullah and his supporters were offered political asylum by a number of countries, including Russia and the United States, but he decided to stay in Kabul, not wanting to abandon the country at such a difficult time.

Before the capture of the city, he managed to transport his wife, children and sister to Delhi. His brother Shapur Ahmadzai, the chief of security Jafsar, the head of the office Tuhi and Najibullah Mohammad remained in Kabul. forced the country's former president to take refuge in the Indian embassy and then in the UN office. The country's governments, constantly changing in 1995 and 1996, demanded the extradition of Najibullah. The harder was the blow dealt by the former allies. Kozyrev (Minister of Foreign Affairs) said that Moscow does not want to have anything to do with the remnants of the previous regime in Afghanistan.

Last Hero

On September 26, 1996, the Taliban captured Najibullah and his supporters were taken from the UN office. He was offered to sign a document recognizing the Pakistan-Afghan border, but he refused. After severe torture, former President Mohammad Najibullah was sentenced to death. The execution took place on September 27, Najibullah and his brother were tied to a car and dragged to the presidential palace, where they were later hanged.

According to the customs of Islam, the Taliban forbade Najibullah to be buried, but the people still remembered and honored his memory: people in Peshawar and Quetta secretly read prayers for him. When his body was finally handed over to the Red Cross, the Ahmadzai tribe, of which his grandfather was a leader, buried him in his hometown of Gardez.

On the twelfth anniversary of Najibullah's death, a meeting was held for the first time to honor his memory. The head of the Watan Party of Afghanistan, Jabarkhel, suggested that Mohammad Najibullah was killed by enemies and opponents of the people on orders from outside. A survey of residents conducted in 2008 showed that 93.2% of the population were supporters of Najibullah.

soviet afghan war

It is known that the leader of the ethnic Uzbeks, General Abdul Rashid Dostum, played a decisive role in the fall of the Najibullah regime. His formations approached Kabul from the north and actually cut off the capital of Afghanistan from the northern provinces, where significant reserves of weapons and material resources were concentrated. The rebellion of General Dostum served as the impetus for the fall of the already noticeably weakened Najibullah regime. The decisive actions of General Dostum, who transferred large military formations to Kabul, were quite unexpected for the main participants in the Afghan events. The Kabul garrison was not prepared to repel an attack from the north by its former allies. In addition, the uncertainty and difficult winter of 1991-92 seriously weakened the ability of the government army and administrative apparatus to resist. Such a rapid fall of Najibullah was also unexpected for the most influential leader of the Mujahideen, Hekmatyar, who simply did not have time to be near the capital at the time of the collapse of the pro-communist regime.

Dostum's actions near Kabul in April 1992 could not have been successful without their prior coordination with Ahmad Shah Massoud and the Shia Hazaras. Control of Kabul was a major goal in post-war Afghanistan. To ensure success at Kabul, Dostum needed to use all the forces at his disposal. Undoubtedly, Dostum’s action would have been impossible without certain guarantees from Massoud’s forces and the Hazaras regarding the security of the northern Afghan territories, controlled by Uzbek forces throughout the years of the war.

In response, Dostum actually ensured control over the capital of Afghanistan to the formations of Afghan national and religious minorities. Before the emergence of Hekmatyar's forces, Kabul was divided into spheres of influence controlled mainly by the Tajik forces of the IOA Rabbani/Masud, the Shia Hazaras from the Hezb-e-Wahdat party and the Uzbek forces of General Dostum. Of course, the fighting forces of Masud’s Hazaras and Tajiks had a more convenient and shorter route to Kabul from, respectively, Hazarjat and the Panjshir Gorge than the Pashtun troops of Hekmatyar. However, such coordinated actions in April 1992 to actually capture Kabul by three political organizations of national and religious minorities that were far from loyal to each other fit too well with the idea of ​​​​opposing the Pashtun restoration in Afghanistan.

As a result, the idea of ​​restoring Afghan statehood with the dominance of ethnic Pashtuns, which looked quite natural, was never realized. The events of April 1992 led to the fact that the main control over the state institutions of power of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan passed not to the most powerful political organization of the Mujahideen, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, but to the Rabbani/Masood party, the Islamic Society of Afghanistan (IOA). This had very serious consequences for the integrity of Afghanistan. The Islamic Party of Afghanistan (IPA) of the Pashtun Hekmatyar claimed political power throughout Afghanistan. While the Tajik Rabbani did not have enough strength or capabilities for this. The political organization of the IOA had enough power over most of Kabul and a number of northern provinces with a predominantly Tajik population.

“Najibullah would have lasted longer if not for Gorbachev’s betrayal. The USSR signed an agreement with the United States on the simultaneous cessation of assistance from the Soviet Union to the Najibullah regime, and from the United States to the Mujahideen. But Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Kuwait continued to help the Mujahideen, while Najibullah "he was left alone with his problems. The cessation of assistance from the USSR deprived him of all prospects and hopes for the future."

There was another reason for the fall of Najibullah’s regime: he failed to resolve the national issue. Even earlier, Army General Varennikov proposed creating Tajik, Nuristan and Hazara autonomies on the territory of Afghanistan, but Najibullah, a Pashtun by origin, was against it. We tried to avoid bloody battles with the troops of Ahmad Shah Massoud, who controlled the Panjshir Gorge and the Salang Pass, and conducted secret negotiations with him on the cessation of hostilities in order to avoid losses on both sides. Najibullah was extremely dissatisfied with these negotiations, and when Shevardnadze and Kryuchkov arrived in Afghanistan at the beginning of 1989, he complained to them that Varennikov was conducting a behind-the-scenes dialogue and allegedly wanted to conclude a separate agreement with Ahmad Shah Massoud. Kryuchkov even tried to get relevant testimony from our military about this.

Najibullah's pro-Pashtun policy towards the northern peoples also caused discord in the army. Once, for example, he sent General Dostum’s Uzbek infantry division to reinforce government troops who were fighting the Mujahideen. There was no way to do this, because the area where the fighting took place was inhabited by Pashtuns. And despite the fact that the Uzbeks acted there very effectively, in the end they were still surrounded - the Pashtun government divisions themselves withdrew and exposed the flanks of this division, exposing it to attack.

In addition, mostly representatives of national minorities served as privates in the army, while the officers were Pashtuns. As a result, all the formations staffed by national minorities began to break away from Najibullah, eventually creating a “union of northern peoples” and uniting with the Mujahideen. A little later, having established contact with Ahmad Shah Massoud, they moved to Kabul, where they entered first in 1992

A few days before this, by the way, Najibullah managed to send seven of our advisers from the city. One of them, Major General Vladimir Lagoshin, told how Najibullah invited him to his place and warned that power would soon pass to the opposition, and he himself had five days left as president. Najibullah also added that, although the Soviets are traitors, he considers it his duty to send military advisers home safe and sound. And indeed: when the administration of the Kabul airfield began to create various obstacles related to the departure of the plane, Najibullah came to the airfield and assisted in sending advisers to Tashkent."

Najibullah was not destined to save himself, and his fate turned out to be truly dramatic. He was a Pashtun, a representative of the family to which one of the rulers of Afghanistan, King Abdurrahman Khan, belonged. Therefore, when the Taliban came to power four years after his overthrow, Najibullah hoped that they would not touch their fellow tribesman.

Ahmad Shah Massoud, before leaving Kabul, invited Najibullah to flee along with the retreating Mujahideen, but Najibullah refused - he hoped that he could later even count on a post in the Taliban government.

The Taliban decided differently: the former president was brutally beaten and hanged. It must be said that neither when the Taliban, who took the city, entered the building of the UN mission, where Najibullah was at that moment, nor later did the United Nations express any protest about the seizure of its building in Kabul.

There is a legend that before his death, Najibullah snatched a machine gun from the Pashtun escorting him and started a battle in which he died. And he was hanged already dead.

So, the passivity of the RA in military operations, hopes for solving the problem by force, the active subversive work of the opposition in the RA army, the connection in the psychology of the population of all troubles with the April Revolution and general fatigue and, most importantly, the lack of real actions to improve the situation in areas controlled by the government, led ultimately leading to the fall of Najibula's regime.

The situation in Afghanistan after the withdrawal of Soviet troops. Western forecasts that the Kabul regime would fall immediately after the end of the Soviet military presence due to its complete unviability, and that a coalition government of Mujahideen groups would lead the country to peace after the expulsion of the “communist plague” turned out to be unfounded.

It is difficult to agree with the Western point of view on the Afghan problem at that time. But, to their justification, it must be said that this point of view also underwent changes and was adjusted by time. However, on March 18, 1992, Najibullah proposed transferring power to a transitional government and left his post on April 16. On April 27-28, the Mujahideen Transitional Council arrived in Kabul.