Chapter 90

The Panjshir guerrillas have been active in the Panjshir Valley, controlling the land route for Soviet entry into Afghanistan. They frequently launch attacks, causing heavy losses to the transport forces. It was precisely because of this that the 40th Army decided to completely annihilate this guerrilla group.

Having learned from their previous mistakes, they adopted a strategy of blocking all mountain passes, hoping to eliminate the Panjshir guerrillas in one fell swoop. However, now they have opened a gap, allowing the guerrillas to slip out of the encirclement. Badakhshan Province is full of mountains; who knows where the guerrillas might be hiding?

Moreover, when did the Jalalabad guerrillas manage to get inside the encirclement? They even rescued the Panjshir guerrillas, making us wander aimlessly in these mountains for so long!

Thinking about this, Diako could no longer hide his anger and looked at Kurniaeva: "Aiva, you made us miss our chance!"

Kurniaeva could ignore the accusations from the officers of the 40th Army because they were not in the same system; she belonged to the KGB. However, the GRU's special forces were under the KGB, so she had to take Diako's accusations seriously.

"Rest assured, Comrade Diako, they won't escape. They have mixed together, which makes it easier for us to catch them all at once," Kurniaeva said.

"Do you know where they are hiding?" Diako asked.

"Not yet, but we will know soon. I need to request a special aircraft from headquarters," Kurniaeva said calmly.

A medium-sized helicopter took off from the air base in Tajikistan. The five-blade rotor stirred the air, making a whirring sound. The large cabin looked like a flying hippo, which was exactly what NATO had named the Mi-8 helicopter.

Unlike ordinary Mi-8s, this helicopter had rectangular radio domes on both sides of the cockpit, and an array of six cross-polarized antennas could be seen outside. This was an Mi-8PPA special electronic warfare helicopter.

After taking off from the base, the helicopter crossed the border and entered Afghan airspace. It continuously circled over the mountains in the north, with the six cross-shaped antennas intermittently receiving electromagnetic signals.

Damn mountains! In the plains, it would be easy to detect radio signals, but now the helicopter had to shuttle back and forth through the valleys. Not to mention the tiny signal from a wristwatch, even the military radios of ground forces often failed due to the mountainous terrain.

Inside the cockpit, several electronic warfare officers sat in their seats, staring intently at the large round display. Suddenly, one of the officers saw a bright spot on the screen.

Target detected! Fifteen kilometers away in a valley!

"Raven calling GRU, Raven calling GRU," the electronic warfare officer said into his headset: "Target detected, in a valley five kilometers north of the Lion's Mouth in Badakhshan Province."

Putting down the radio, Diako's face showed a cold smile: "Our mission is to completely annihilate these two guerrilla groups. Now, we will move through the valley from the east."

"Comrade Diako, should we inform the 108th Division?" Kurniaeva asked.

"Those useless men couldn't even complete the task of eliminating the guerrillas in the encirclement. Can we rely on them? One special forces brigade is enough," Diako said.

"That Muhamed is very cunning. Please be extremely careful," Kurniaeva said.

"Hmph," Diako grunted, and with his troops, he slowly disappeared from Kurniaeva's sight. Having obtained the precise location of the enemy, Diako no longer needed Kurniaeva as a guide.

Kurniaeva had a foreboding feeling. Muhamed was simply too clever, always discovering their plans. However, Diako was leading a brigade of experienced soldiers. Even if they failed to catch the fleeing Afghan guerrillas, what danger could there be?

Diako thought the same. A few years ago, when the Soviet Union decided to help stabilize the situation in Afghanistan, the GRU was among the first units deployed. Many of the veterans in his unit had participated in those battles. This time, to fight in the Afghan mountains, a significant portion of his troops were Tajiks and Uzbeks who spoke Afghan languages and were familiar with mountain warfare.

If not for the limited number of helicopters, which couldn't transport his entire force, he would have mobilized them to quickly reach the mountainous area and encircle and annihilate the two guerrilla groups.

Now, his greatest concern was that he might arrive too late, and the guerrillas would have already left. However, as long as the Mi-8 electronic reconnaissance helicopter continued to intercept the radio beacon signals, they could always track the guerrillas' movements.

Thus, Diako's troops trekked through the mountains, advancing along rugged paths.

Diako was also cautious. To prevent the Afghan guerrillas from setting traps, he contacted Bagram, and a dozen Mi-24 Hind helicopters would arrive simultaneously. Even if the Afghan guerrillas had set traps, they would be quickly crushed under the combined air and ground assault.

The rugged mountain roads were impassable even for armored vehicles, and they had to rely on foot or local donkeys.

After half a day of marching and crossing several mountains, the GRU special forces brigade appeared in a valley at dusk.

The Mi-8 reconnaissance helicopter had already flown away, and the second one had not yet arrived. Diako knew that the guerrillas had been inactive for three hours in the afternoon and only left in the last hour.

In one hour, they couldn't have gone far. When the second Mi-8 arrived and re-established contact, it would be night. At that time, a surprise attack on the Afghan guerrillas would ensure their complete annihilation!

"Commander, there are high mountains on both sides. Should we send people to check?" a battalion commander asked Diako.

The terrain was too treacherous. If the Afghan guerrillas were ambushing from both sides, it would put them at a significant disadvantage.

"I'm hoping they show up from both sides," Diako said, eyeing the mountains with a cunning look.

If they really appeared now, it would be suicide. The sound of helicopters was already approaching, and several Mi-24 Hinds were circling overhead. The moment the Afghan guerrillas showed themselves, they would be ruthlessly attacked.

Although it made him seem like bait, Diako was not afraid at all. He had the upper hand.

The slopes on both sides were quiet. The wind blew through the valley, making a whistling sound. As the sun set, the temperature began to drop.

Damn place! Although Soviet winters were cold, they didn't change so drastically. In the afternoon, it was hot enough to wear just a shirt, but by midnight, a coat was necessary. The temperature difference was too great.

Diako cursed and continued forward. The helicopters circled overhead, and the troops formed a long snake, quickly following behind.

"Comrade Muhamed, the Soviets have indeed entered the valley," Masood said softly, looking through a high-powered military telescope at the opposite side of the valley.

"It's all thanks to that watch," Muhamed said. "Otherwise, how would the Soviets know we were here?"

When Muhamed saw the watch on Masood's wrist, he knew something was wrong. He carefully opened the back of the watch and found a hidden battery. The watch band was the antenna.

In this era, there were no advanced positioning devices like GPS, which was still in the experimental stage, and the first GLONASS satellite wouldn't be launched for a few months. Integrated circuits were not as advanced as they would become later.

This device was a simple radio beacon transmitter, continuously sending signals to report its location. To pinpoint the location, more equipment was needed.

When Muhamed saw the Soviet helicopters with cross-shaped antennas flying over the mountains, he knew the Soviets were indeed searching for them. Muhamed had two choices: destroy the watch and eliminate the signal, or use it to set a massive trap for the Soviets.

The Soviets had inflicted heavy losses on Masood's guerrillas. Now, with a new plan, Masood agreed without hesitation to Muhamed's scheme.

Now, everything was proceeding according to their plan. The Soviets had fallen into their trap.

Although Soviet helicopters were patrolling overhead, Masood was still confident. This time, what would kill the Soviets would not be bullets or shells, but... rocks!

"Let's do it," Muhamed said.

"Alright," Masood said, looking at the Soviet soldiers in the valley with hatred and connecting the wires in his hand.

"Boom! Boom, boom!" The explosions echoed through the sky, shaking the earth.

The explosions did not occur on their route. When they heard the sounds from both sides, Diako's special forces immediately crouched down, cocked their guns, and aimed at the mountains.

When they looked up, they were stunned.

Oh, God, what is that?

"Rumble, rumble." Countless boulders rolled down the slopes, crashing into the ground, causing violent tremors. Smoke rose from the slopes, where the explosions had occurred.

The explosions were not right next to them, but their effect was far greater than if they had been. Their bodies trembled involuntarily as they stared at the rolling boulders, forgetting to run. The boulders completely dominated their field of vision. (To be continued...)