Afghanistan's 1973 Coup: Make-Up Analysis

When the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan on December 1979, the goal was to help Afghan communist forces set up a communist government. The Soviet Union felt Afghanistan had key resources and a foothold in the Middle East to spread communist ideas. The result would be a war that the Soviet Union wishes it never got involved in and likened to their “Vietnam War”, meaning winning a number of battles but not the war like what happened to the U.S. in Vietnam. The background of the war, outcome of the war, and impact on the United States are key to understanding the Soviet-Afghan War.

“Afghanistan was a monarchy ruled by King Zahir Shah. On July 17, 1973, when the king was on away on vacation, a man by the name of Mohammad Daoud Khan attained power. The military takeover did not cause any bloodshed, but as we see through Amir's story, it was still a frightening time for the people of Kabul who heard rioting and shooting in the streets. For six years, Mohammad Daoud Khan was President and Prime Minister of Afghanistan. Then, on April 27, 1978, he was violently overthrown by the PDPA, People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan. Daoud was killed in

For over 2 centuries, Afghanistan has known virtually no time without war. Beginning around 326 B.C. with the conquests of Alexander the Great, to the Persians, British, Russians and most recently, America and our NATO allies, Afghanistan has been cultivated into the country that it is today through a trial by fire. Regardless of this relentless onslaught of foreign military power, the Afghan people have tirelessly defended their homeland with no outside power ever being able to subdue them completely. Following the withdrawal of the Soviet Union in 1989, the country fell into civil war, torn even further apart by fiercely dedicated tribal warlords. This power vacuum led to the rise of a group called the Taliban. Led by a one eyed man

1926-29 - Amanullah tries to introduce social reforms, which however stir civil unrest. He flees. 1933 - Zahir Shah becomes king and Afghanistan remains a monarchy for next four decades. 1953 - General Mohammed Daud becomes prime minister. Turns to Soviet Union for economic and military assistance.

In 1979, the USSR took control of the Afghan capital, Kabul, and tried to gain control over the whole country and its people. The invasion was a failure, costing thousands of lives and having serious consequences.

The situation in Afghanistan actually began in 1979 when the Soviet Union invaded their country. The United States funded money to the "mujahedin," or holy warriors, in the name of stopping communism. From this support, Afghanistan was able to defeat the Soviet Union in 1989. Yet the country became very unstable after the war. Political power was fluctuating often and leaders came in and out of power rapidly. Farmers resorted to growing many drugs such as poppies and marijuana and sold them around the globe. Cities were annihilated. Over five million Afghanis fled to other countries in search of a better life. When the Afghanis turned to the United States for help in rebuilding our country, we refused. This caused great anger amongst the Afghani people directed toward the United States. This also lead to Mullah Mohammod Omar, the current leader of Afghanistan, to form a ground of men to "rebuild" his country. They are now known as the Taliban. Omar's personal description is, "A simple band of dedicated youths determined to establish the laws of God on

Afghanistan has been for years a country struggling with authority issues. These struggles date back to the 16th century of the Mughal Empire and continues with the Taliban today. These historic struggles are responsible of the changing nature of political authority in this volatile region of our world. There have been many attempts from other groups to try and “conquer” the land but

As America find herself in today’s “War on Terrorism,” one can easily find a number of similarities between today’s situation and the war in Vietnam. As the Taliban steadily loses control and power over Afghanistan, it becomes exceedingly important to discuss potential replacement governments. Afghanistan is, like Vietnam in the 50’s and 60’s, a very volatile country full of a variety of people speaking different dialects and practicing different religions. It is very important, then, that the government that is installed is one that is capable of maintaining some type of control or authority over its diverse people.

Before the coup, Afghanistan was a hub of life and vibrancy. I could talk endlessly of those joyful days before the communists broke into Afghanistan and stole her heart. When I

Afghanastan is known for being mountainous but the geography and climate are different depending on the part of the country. The country has three separate areas in terms of geography including the Central Highlands which has steep valleys and mountains that are dry and soil that is desert-steppe and meadow-steppe in other parts. The Southern Plateau has high plateaus and desert land. The climate is milder and the soil is not fertile except next to the river. The Northern Plains are very fertile with a major river and a lot of mineral deposits in the soil.

“Afghanistan was a monarchy ruled by King Zahir Shah. On July 17, 1973, when the king was on away on vacation, a man by the name of Mohammad Daoud Khan attained power. The military takeover did not cause any bloodshed, but as we see through Amir's story, it was still a frightening time for the people of Kabul who heard rioting and shooting in the streets. For six years, Mohammad Daoud Khan was President and Prime Minister of Afghanistan. Then, on April 27, 1978, he was violently overthrown by the PDPA, People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan. Daoud was killed in the coup along with most of his family. Even though Afghanistan had long insisted on maintaining its independence from Russia, the PDPA was a Communist party and therefore held close ties to the Soviet Union. The PDPA instituted many

Prior to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, the country was governed by President Mohammed Daoud Khan, who himself gained power through a bloodless coup and subsequent overthrow of his cousin, Mohammed Zahir Shah in 1973, ruler of Afghanistan for the better part of forty years. Promising a progressive and democratically reformed government, the Daoud regime turned out to be an autocratic, oppressive administration, particularly repressive to rival parties such as the People Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA). Subsequently, with the assassination of a prominent member of the PDPA, there was an uprising and government protest. On the morning of 27 April 1978, troops loyal to the PDPA stormed the government palace and killed Daoud. The

Yesterday I experienced a rather unpleasant night, I was awoken by gun rattling and bombs. Things I had not experienced before. I was told by Ali that they are just “hunting ducks, I was scared and Hassan too until Baba embraced me in his arms, had I felt safe. Today, I overheard on Baba’s radio, Kabul was rid of our monarchy and in the king’s absence stepped in his cousin, Daoud Khan.

The political effects on the people is also illustrated in the novel through Rasheed’s behavior and job. During the time where it was just Mariam living with Rasheed, his job was fairly steady and routine. He lived in a decent size house and made enough money to provide for Mariam and still have a little left over (Hosseini, p. 58). After the communist rule, the Mujahideen forces who were accustomed to fighting and war, suddenly no longer had anyone to fight. The different ethnic groups in Afghanistan were constantly in competition with each other, and when they had to appoint a person to lead the country, anger caused the other groups to unite and resort back to fighting the government in 1992 (Hosseini, p. 171). During the next four years

Also, people like Habibullah Kalakani and Ghulam Nabi Charkhi, who were potential political threat to the royal family, were liquidated by Nadir Shah. During this period, Afghanistan enjoyed peace and constancy. Nadir’s policies of national gradualism and positive neutrality and friendship were rather effective, and enabled him to establish control over the domestic environment.