The Road to Afghanistan - George Washington University

water has such healing properties that it can raise people from the dead.”Karmal grinned in response. His health was never of concern to him. He nevercomplained about it. He was more bothered by inactivity, although at first, a year ago, hehad perceived his forced departure from Afghanistan as salvation.Finding himself in Prague in July 1978 and engaging in his new ambassadorialresponsibilities, he initially felt at ease, as if he had just been liberated from an enormousburden. He was a professional revolutionary who had spent thirty years of his life inpolitical struggle, and without any hesitation was prepared to continue his revolutionarypath. However, everything that had happened in the last few months, beginning from April27, weighed heavily on him, and seemed to be unnatural and inherently dangerous for himand his beloved Afghanistan. Although Karmal was a fighter to the core, he was absolutelyunable to inflict violence or indulge in intrigues. He was an idealist who perceived themoral dangers of “the building of communism” too literally.Karmal’s character and his revolutionary career, which were steady and open-faced,were highly respected among his allies and within the broad circles of democratic forces.However, everything changed a year ago. The events of April 27, the unexpected revolutionthat turned into a bloodbath, felt like an open wound in his soul.A year earlier, having found himself in the heart of Europe, in the beautiful old cityof Prague, he suddenly realized that the hated Amin was far away, which meant that all thehumiliations inflicted by Amin were also far away. He thought that he did not have to bearresponsibility any longer for what was happening in Afghanistan, that he would become adiplomat representing his country. He thought that he could finally take a break from theincessant hostilities between Parcham and Khalq, the animosity that evolved into Amin’s490