The Road to Afghanistan - George Washington University

The Road to Afghanistan - George Washington University The Road to Afghanistan - George Washington University

13.07.2015 Views

in an open power struggle. Or perhaps, not unlike Amin, he was inclined to scheme his waythrough the matter. It seemed to me that morality was irrelevant to them, and that neitherreally respected the party code. We won’t blindly hypothesize who was to blame for themisfortune at the entrance of Taraki’s office. We’ll never know whether Amin arranged theprovocation, Tarun fell victim to a misunderstanding between the bodyguards, or Taraki’sbodyguards were targeting Amin. The fact is that, whatever happened, the incident played toAmin’s advantage.Detachments of the Kabul garrison that had been placed on high alert quickly mobilizedand took control of the most important sites in the capital. Units of the special forcessurrounded the Presidential Palace and disarmed any guardsmen deemed unreliable. Tarakiinstantly found himself completely isolated. All telephone lines were cut off. Nobody could seehim without Amin’s personal permission. One could say that the coup d’etat had taken place.The coup, it must be said, was well organized. Amin had prepared well. He had compileda list of people to be arrested in advance. These were mostly military officers suspected ofdisloyalty to Amin. They were thrown in jail that very day. The frontier affairs minister,Mazdouryar, was also arrested. He was one of the rebellious four, who, unlike his comrades,decided not to hide. He had been spending that day with his family in Paghman, in the suburbsof Kabul. All close relatives of “the gang of four” were imprisoned that day.***Valery Starostin, returning to Mikrorayon after the meeting with Sarwari and theministers, decided to stop by his home on the way to the embassy. He told Tamara that itwas possible that some Afghans led by Gulabzoi, whom she knew, might arrive. If they wereto appear, she was to invite them into the residence without delay, then phone the embassy542

and say, “Lunch is ready.”The resident was not in his office when Valery arrived at the embassy. Ivanov wasalso absent. Valery stopped by the office of Orlov-Morozov, who, as it turned out, had notbeen well informed of the unfolding events. Valery wrote a cable about the meeting atGulabzoi’s apartment, gave it to the deputy resident, and went home.Starostin called his wife from the embassy’s vestibule. He asked her how she wasdoing, to which she replied, “Lunch is ready. I asked the embassy staff member on duty togive you this message.”“I’ll be right there,” replied Valery, shooting an angry glare at the officer on duty.When she heard the sound of Valery’s approaching Volga, Tamara quickly opened thegate. A new white Toyota Crown was parked near the garage. “Looks like I have gottenmyself into a situation,” thought Starostin. “I suppose I asked for an adventure.”He entered the hallway. Assadullah Sarwari, dressed in his traditional Pashtun garb,was lying down on the carpet, sweating and having difficulty breathing—the heat was quiteunusual for autumn in Afghanistan. To his right was a near-empty bottle of Borzhomi. AKalashnikov was beside him. Watanjar sat on the couch near the coffee table, next to a redpaintedwall. He was also dressed in Pashtun attire and had an automatic weapon withsome extra ammunition next to him. Propped up by the bookshelf was a machine gun, themake of which Valery did not recognize. Gulabzoi, wearing Pashtun attire similar to hisfriends, was helping Tamara in the kitchen.“They’re well armed,” thought Starostin. “They are not going to part with their livescheaply. If they’re discovered here and the house is surrounded, there will be a seriousbattle. What should Tamara and I do? Are the two of us going to be running ammunition for543

and say, “Lunch is ready.”<strong>The</strong> resident was not in his office when Valery arrived at the embassy. Ivanov wasalso absent. Valery s<strong>to</strong>pped by the office of Orlov-Morozov, who, as it turned out, had notbeen well informed of the unfolding events. Valery wrote a cable about the meeting atGulabzoi’s apartment, gave it <strong>to</strong> the deputy resident, and went home.Starostin called his wife from the embassy’s vestibule. He asked her how she wasdoing, <strong>to</strong> which she replied, “Lunch is ready. I asked the embassy staff member on duty <strong>to</strong>give you this message.”“I’ll be right there,” replied Valery, shooting an angry glare at the officer on duty.When she heard the sound of Valery’s approaching Volga, Tamara quickly opened thegate. A new white Toyota Crown was parked near the garage. “Looks like I have gottenmyself in<strong>to</strong> a situation,” thought Starostin. “I suppose I asked for an adventure.”He entered the hallway. Assadullah Sarwari, dressed in his traditional Pashtun garb,was lying down on the carpet, sweating and having difficulty breathing—the heat was quiteunusual for autumn in <strong>Afghanistan</strong>. To his right was a near-empty bottle of Borzhomi. AKalashnikov was beside him. Watanjar sat on the couch near the coffee table, next <strong>to</strong> a redpaintedwall. He was also dressed in Pashtun attire and had an au<strong>to</strong>matic weapon withsome extra ammunition next <strong>to</strong> him. Propped up by the bookshelf was a machine gun, themake of which Valery did not recognize. Gulabzoi, wearing Pashtun attire similar <strong>to</strong> hisfriends, was helping Tamara in the kitchen.“<strong>The</strong>y’re well armed,” thought Starostin. “<strong>The</strong>y are not going <strong>to</strong> part with their livescheaply. If they’re discovered here and the house is surrounded, there will be a seriousbattle. What should Tamara and I do? Are the two of us going <strong>to</strong> be running ammunition for543

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