Afghanistan | From The Cold War Through The War O...

Local guerrilla fighters, known as Mujahideen , launched a "jihad" against the occupiers. They received significant covert support, including advanced weaponry like Stinger missiles, from the United States (via Operation Cyclone ), Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia.

During the early Cold War, Afghanistan maintained a fragile neutrality while seeking aid from both the U.S. and USSR. However, internal instability eventually drew in the superpowers. Afghanistan from the Cold War through the War o...

The Soviet Union invaded on December 24, 1979, to support a struggling pro-communist regime and prevent the spread of Islamic fundamentalism near its borders. Local guerrilla fighters, known as Mujahideen , launched

After a decade of stalemate and heavy losses—often called "the Soviet Union's Vietnam"—the last Soviet troops withdrew in February 1989. Civil War and the Rise of the Taliban (1989–2001) Local guerrilla fighters