Afghan Commando Forces
The Afghan Commando Forces, also referred to as the DRA Commando Forces from 1978 to 1992, were the former combined forces of commando, paratrooper and special forces of the Afghan Army. The force was composed of numerous brigades, regiments and battalions initially established by King Mohammad Zahir Shah and Sardar Abdul Wali Khan in 1964 and was disbanded in 1992, following the collapse of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan in 1992.
Establishment
The history of special forces within the Afghan Armed Forces dates back to early 1964 when the 242nd Parachute Battalion was established as the Royal Afghan Army’s first elite formation which was an independent battalion, subordinate to the General Staff. Sardar Abdul Wali, Commander-in-Chief of the 1st Central Army Corps, son of Sardar Shah Wali Khan and later the corps commander, established the battalion to suppress demonstrations, riots in the capital Kabul, and to prevent potential coup attempts. Command of the battalion was passed down to Capt. Habibullah, who recently completed the Infantry Officers’ Advanced Course and airborne training in Fort Benning, United States and trained with the British Special Air Service. The 242nd Parachute Battalion was stationed in Sherpur Fort, northwest Kabul where they conducted airborne training in Bagram and Jalalabad.During the summer of 1967, the 444th Commando Battalion was formed by Sardar Abdul Wali, becoming the Royal Afghan Army’s second elite formation and one of the most important commando units in Afghanistan's military history. The battalion was formed out of Wali’s fears of a coup attempt led by Mohammad Daoud Khan, as well as rising opposition to the Afghan monarchy, their role being to prevent coup attempts, riots and political demonstrations in Kabul. The 444th Commando Battalion was commanded by Lt. Col. Aqel Shah, who later passed it to Maj. Rahmatullah Safi, who received training in the British Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and the Soviet Ryazan Higher Airborne Command School. Safi was additionally part of Sardar Abdul Wali’s secret espionage and intelligence network, being described as his “admirer” and “devotee”. By then, the battalion numbered around 1,600 commandos. The battalion was stationed in Bala Hissar fortress in the southern outskirts of Kabul, within 1 kilometre of the Arg Royal Palace, being airborne-qualified and under the control of the 1st Central Army Corps.
To properly accommodate the new commando formations, they were given access to BTR-40 personnel carriers, tanks and other military equipment. Eimal Peroz, son of Gen. Khushal Peroz, also stated they were the first unit in the Royal Afghan Army to use the AK-47 rifle. The early commando and parachute battalion's officer base was primarily made up of the Afghan aristocracy and those close to Sardar Abdul Wali, who feared a potential coup attempt from Mohammad Daoud Khan.
In 1968, the “J course”, an advanced post-graduate paratrooper commando course, was established within the 444th Commando Battalion at Bala Hissar Fortress. Hidayatullah Aziz, who would go on to be the commander of the battalion, volunteered at 25 years old. After an examination by Sardar Abdul Wali, the founder of the Afghan Commando Force, he became one of many participants drawn from the Royal Afghan Army’s officer and non-commissioned officer base.
Ultimately, three graduates of the “J Course” would become deputy commanders of the 444th Commando; Gul Agha, Hidayatullah Aziz and Abdullah Baqi. During this time, the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan launched a successful recruitment campaign targeted towards participants of the “J Course” with all three of the deputy commanders being members of the party. Within the commando course, discussions on “liberation” and political philosophies such as progressivism were facilitated by Deputy Commander Gul Agha in secrecy, as many of the commandos in the course were already part of the PDPA.
Under the monarchy of King Mohammad Zahir Shah, the 444th Commando Battalion and the 242nd Parachute Battalion were sent to the Soviet Union to undergo advanced training, more specially, to the Ryazan Higher Airborne Command School. This included the three deputy commanders of the 444th Commando and two non-PDPA members Noor Mohammad and Amir Mohammad. From the 242nd Parachute Battalion, paratrooper Saboor Khuzman and a few other officers were also sent to Ryazan. PDPA party members within the commando force discreetly distributed progressive magazines such as Dunya and Paykar, additionally having maintained contact with Tudeh Party of Iran.
Soldiers of the Afghan Commando Force who were sent to the Soviet Union eventually returned, after having successfully completed training with the Soviet Airborne Forces and receiving diplomas. This included Gul Agha, Hidayatullah Aziz and Faiz Mohammed, who became the Chief of Operations within the 444th Commando Battalion.
Uniform specifications
Under the reign of Mohammed Zahir Shah, more specifically in 1964, the 242nd Parachute Battalion wore locally produced one-piece olive drab overalls, inspired by those worn by the Soviet Airborne Forces, as well as metal airborne wings with a black cloth backing. They additionally wore a black sleeve badge depicting a silver bullion airborne cap with wheat and red thunderbolts on each side.In 1967, the 444th Commando Battalion wore the standard khaki Afghan Army uniform, as well as a distinct blue patch with a singular red lightning flash and jump wings with a light blue cloth backing. The Afghan commandos wore Soviet-style pilotkas, adorned with a small metal pin of the Royal Afghan Army’s insignia or a military variant of Afghanistan's national emblem.
The commandos became the first unit in the Afghan Army to use Frog Skin camouflage two-piece uniforms in 1969, initially imported from the Soviet Union. In 1970, paratroopers also resorted to using Frog Skin camouflage. Maroon berets additionally become part of the commando headdress, pulled down to the right.
Operations under the Kingdom of Afghanistan
On 24 May 1970, the first documented commando operation took place, involving the suppression of anti-government protests by the Islamic clergy, led by Herati scholar Muhammad Atta-ullah Faizani. Initially, the Afghan government encouraged the clergy '' to protest against communism, with up to 1500–3000 mullahs from the eastern and southern regions of Afghanistan travelling to Kabul’s Pul-e Khishti Mosque to protest against:- The activities of the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan and a publication of newspaper "Parcham" which celebrated the centenary for Vladimir Lenin’s birth
- "Anti-religious" films being shown on television about Prophet Joseph
- Displays of caricatures of Prophet Mohammed and his number of marriages being quoted by foreign press outlets and the Afghan leftist "Esalat" newspaper
Sardar Abdul Wali ordered units of the Royal Afghan Army, such as the 717th Civil Disciplinary Regiment to remove the protestors by force and use buses to deport them out of Kabul, back to their homes. The 717th arrived at Pul-e Khishti Mosque at 2:00 am, with the 444th Commando Battalion arriving with tanks and armoured vehicles, led by Col. Rahmatullah Safi. The protestors performed a sleep-in outside of the mosque and inside its courtyard as a form of peaceful protest, as soldiers attempted to wake them up and make them leave the area. As a result of the protestors not leaving the mosque, the soldiers carefully used their gunstocks to disperse the crowd, as the mullahs reluctantly moved towards Maiwand Road where the supplementary buses were parked to deport the protestors from the capital. The protestors reluctantly went inside the buses, shouting "Death to Abdul Wali" and "Allahu Akbar".
1973–1978
As the 444th Commando Battalion held a strategic position within Kabul, Prime Minister Mohammad Daoud Khan turned his attention towards the unit to enlist their support in the operation that would later be the 1973 Afghan coup d'état. As the chief of operations within the battalion, Faiz Mohammad was chosen by Daoud to lead the coup, as he began garnering support from officers and junior officers for the operation. He then tasked Hidayutallah Aziz, now a Major, to capture the Arg Royal Palace and for Hashem Zadran to secure the area. It was additionally well known among the 455th Commando Battalion that Zadran was against tribalism and ethnocentrism.Between 1972 and 1973, the 455th Commando Battalion was being formed at Bala Hissar fortress as the Royal Afghan Army’s third elite formation. Before the battalion could come to full strength, Daoud Khan successfully managed to depose Zahir Shah and the Afghan monarchy during the 1973 Afghan coup d'etat in 17 July. Leftist junior officers of the 242nd Parachute Battalion offered their support to Republican elements taking part in the coup, with the 444th Commando Battalion being heavily involved. After the coup, Capt. Hashem Wardak was promoted to the rank of Major and given command of 242nd Para.
After briefly being used as palace guards at the Arg Presidential Palace, the 444th Commando Battalion were moved to Jalalabad from Kabul, leaving the 455th Commando Battalion as the only formation in Bala Hissar fortress, under the command of Maj. Hashem Zadran. Between 1975 and 1977, under the presidency of Mohammed Daoud Khan, three more commando formations were established; the 466th Commando Battalion, 2nd Army Corps, the 666th Commando Battalion, 3rd Army Corps and a supposed 777th Commando Battalion stationed in Gardez, also under the control of the 3rd Army Corps.