The Road to Afghanistan - George Washington University

When they finished counting, they found that the sum consisted of $53,950 and4,220,000 Afghani. They wrote an invoice and signed it before loading the currency into anempty vodka crate and covering it with apples. The resident took the crate along. Theyfinished the cognac. Osadchiy and Bakhturin were ready to depart.“Wait,” Starostin stopped them. “Let’s take the license plates off the car.” After theresident and the security officer had left, Starostin blocked the garage door. The car hiddenin the garage didn’t seem to him a menacing liability anymore.September 16A.K. Misak:Amin held a meeting with a small group of his close allies on the night of September 16.It was formally considered a meeting of the Politburo. A plenary session of the CentralCommittee was called in the morning. Twenty-six of thirty-one members of the CentralCommittee were present. Amin colorfully described the assassination attempt that he claimedTaraki had organized against him. “Candidate of the Central Committee,” Amin spoke withpathos, “dear Comrade Tarun had been murdered! I was to share his fate. Taraki decided tostage a coup in the party and the country with the help of four cowardly traitors, whom wekicked out from their offices several days ago. They lifted a sword against our revolution. Nowthey will be punished by this very sword.”Amin was a first-class orator, a far more talented rhetorician than Taraki. He appealedto exclude Taraki from the ranks of the party, which meant his automatic removal from allthe positions that he held.The Politburo member Pandzhsheri and I proposed that Taraki be invited to the plenary567