20th century afghan history
20th century russian history
20th century soviet history
A01=Mohammed Kakar
afghan culture
afghan historian
afghan politics
afghanistan
Author_Mohammed Kakar
authoritative documentation
Category=JPS
Category=JPVR
Category=JWL
Category=NHD
Category=NHF
cold war
communism
coup detat
democratic republic of afghanistan
eq_bestseller
eq_history
eq_isMigrated=1
eq_isMigrated=2
eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
eq_society-politics
eyewitness accounts
guerrilla war
kabul prison
marxist government
military superpower
mujahideen
party politics
prisoners
saur revolution
soviet afghan war
soviet army
soviet invasion
soviet occupation
soviet union
Product details
- ISBN 9780520208933
- Weight: 635g
- Dimensions: 156 x 232mm
- Publication Date: 03 Mar 1997
- Publisher: University of California Press
- Publication City/Country: US
- Product Form: Paperback
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Few people are more respected or better positioned to speak on the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan than M. Hassan Kakar. A professor at Kabul University and scholar of Afghanistan affairs at the time of the 1978 coup d'etat, Kakar vividly describes the events surrounding the Soviet invasion in 1979 and the encounter between the military superpower and the poorly armed Afghans. The events that followed are carefully detailed, with eyewitness accounts and authoritative documentation that provide an unparalleled view of this historical moment. Because of his prominence Kakar was at first treated with deference by the Marxist government and was not imprisoned, although he openly criticized the regime. When he was put behind bars the outcry from scholars all over the world possibly saved his life. In prison for five years, he continued collecting information, much of it from prominent Afghans of varying political persuasions who were themselves prisoners. Kakar brings firsthand knowledge and a historian's sensibility to his account of the invasion and its aftermath.
This is both a personal document and a historical one - Kakar lived through the events he describes, and his concern for human rights rather than party politics infuses his writing. As Afghans and the rest of the world try to make sense of Afghanistan's recent past, Kakar's voice will be one of those most listened to.
M. Hassan Kakar was born in Laghman, Afghanistan, and now lives in San Diego. He has published several works of history and translated books of fiction and nonfiction from English into his native Pashto and Deri.
