The perfect operation. How Soviet special forces took Amin's palace

On December 27, 1979, Amin's palace near Kabul was stormed. As a result of a special operation code-named “Storm-333,” Afghan President Hafizullah Amin was eliminated. This operation, the active phase of which lasted about 1 hour, became the prologue to the entry of Soviet troops into Afghanistan and marked the beginning of a series of local conflicts with the participation of our country at the end of the 20th and beginning of the 21st centuries.

About 650 people took part in the operation to seize Amin’s residence. The Muslim battalion - 520 people, the Airborne Forces company - 87 people and two special forces groups of the KGB of the USSR "Grom" (24 people) and "Zenith" (30 people), which were supposed to directly capture the palace. The attackers were dressed in Afghan uniforms with white armbands; the friend-foe identification password was the shout “Yasha - Misha.”

The Muslim battalion was created from soldiers and officers from Central Asia (Tajiks, Uzbeks, Turkmens). During the selection, special attention was paid to physical training, only those who had served for half a year or a year were involved, the principle was voluntariness, but if there were not enough specialists, a good military expert could be enrolled in the detachment without his consent. The detachment, which, due to its size, was called a battalion, consisted of 4 companies. The first company received the BMP-1, the second and third BTR-60pb, the fourth company was an armament company, it included an AGS-17 platoon (which had just appeared in the troops), a platoon of Lynx infantry jet flamethrowers and a platoon of sappers. The detachment had all the relevant rear units: platoons of automotive and software support, communications, and an additional platoon of Shilka self-propelled guns was assigned to the battalion. A translator was assigned to each company, but, given the national composition, their services were almost never used; all Tajiks, half of the Uzbeks and some of the Turkmen knew Farsi, one of the main languages of Afghanistan. Curiosity came up with only a vacancy for an anti-aircraft gunner officer; it was not possible to find the necessary person of the required nationality, and the dark-haired Russian captain Pautov was hired for this position, who, when silent, did not stand out in the crowd. The detachment was headed by Major Kh. Khalbaev.

The detachment received Afghan uniforms and documents and arrived in Afghanistan at the Bagram base in August 1979. Officially, the battalion was supposed to protect the President of the DRA Hafizullah Amin, but in fact the battalion was used in exactly the opposite way. To call a spade a spade, the leadership of the USSR immediately prepared a battalion to carry out a coup in Afghanistan with the establishment of a pro-Soviet government in power. Before this, Afghanistan had already asked for military assistance and turned to both the USSR and the USA; the leadership of the USSR decided to go its own way, to provide assistance only after the removal of the current leader of the country.

To implement the plan, an airborne company and two special forces detachments were redeployed to Bagram, the formation of which was carried out by the KGB of the USSR. The Zenit detachment consisted of 24 people from Special Group A, which later became known as the Alpha Group. The “Grom” detachment consisted of 30 officers from the special reserve of the KGB of the USSR. All half-divisions participating in the assault were armed with the most modern weapons at that time. Thus, the capture of Amin’s palace became the first time the RPG-18 “Fly” was used. This grenade launcher has become widely known, and now the image of a soldier with a “Fly” is firmly associated in the minds of the participants in the first and second Chechen wars.

Taking Amin's palace was not an easy task. An infantry brigade consisting of 3 battalions was deployed around the palace; the palace's security was additionally reinforced by a tank battalion and an anti-aircraft regiment, which was armed with 12 100-mm cannons and a large number of DShK machine guns, given that the palace stood on a hill, this artillery could become an insurmountable obstacle for the attackers. Amin’s personal guard company, largely consisting of his relatives, was located directly in the palace. Thus, the forces of the defenders were many times greater than the forces of the attackers.

Operation plan

The operation plan included the capture of the palace and the destruction of the air defense systems of the anti-aircraft regiment. The remaining units were supposed to be blocked in military camps. To destroy air defense systems, 2 AGS-17 crews and an engineering platoon were allocated. The grenade launchers were supposed to cut off the anti-aircraft gunners from the air defense systems located in the positions, at which time the engineering platoon was supposed to detonate them.

A separate group was supposed to capture 3 tanks dug in near the palace. 12 people were allocated for this purpose. Two snipers who were supposed to remove the guards from the tanks, 2 machine gunners, tank crews. They were supposed to drive a GAZ-66 car past the positions of the 3rd Security Battalion and capture the tanks.

The 2nd and 3rd companies of the Muslim battalion and the company of paratroopers attached to them were supposed to block the location of the battalions of the security brigade and the tank regiment. To storm the palace, the first company was brought in, which was supposed to bring the Thunder and Zenit assault detachments to the palace on their infantry fighting vehicles.

Storm

The assault on the palace was carried out in accordance with the operation plan; the active phase of the battle lasted about an hour, although the shooting did not stop for another day; some soldiers and officers of the infantry brigade did not want to surrender and fought their way into the mountains. Afghan losses amounted to about 200 people killed, including Amin and his son, about 1,700 military personnel surrendered. Our losses amounted to 19 people, 5 from the KGB assault groups, another 5 were lost by paratroopers, 9 people were lost by the “Muslim battalion”. Almost all members of the assault groups were injured.

The group was the first to leave in a GAZ-66 car, but when the car drove past the location of the 3rd battalion, the alarm had already been announced, the battalion commander and his deputies were standing in the center of the parade ground, the soldiers were receiving weapons and ammunition. The group commander Sakhatov was not at a loss and decided to seize the leadership of the battalion. The car drove onto the parade ground at full speed, the scouts instantly captured the Afghan officers and rushed off. When the Afghans came to their senses, it was already too late; having driven further away, the group lay down by the road and met the Afghan soldiers in pursuit with fire, advancing in a crowd without the leadership of officers, they became easy prey. At this time, the group's snipers destroyed the sentries near the tanks.

As soon as the shooting began at the positions of the 3rd battalion, a general assault began. Two “Shilkas” began to work around the palace, 2 more and AGS crews began to fire at the barracks and courtyards, preventing the soldiers from leaving the barracks. At the same time, motorized infantry advanced to block the barracks. And assault groups advanced to the palace in infantry fighting vehicles. The Afghans quickly came to their senses and opened heavy fire on infantry fighting vehicles moving along the serpentine road. They managed to knock out the first vehicle, and the paratroopers had to leave it and climb up the mountain using ladders specially prepared for such an occasion. As a result, the combat vehicles were at the palace 20 minutes after the start of the operation, followed by an assault and battle for each room of the palace, at the same time as the start of the assault, the Shilkas were supposed to be silent, but this did not happen. The communication channel was clogged with requests for help from the commander of one of the armored personnel carriers, which had fallen into a ditch, so to cease fire on the palace, a liaison had to be sent to the Shilok location. An hour later, President Hafizullah Amin was already dead.

TASS-DOSSIER /Elnara Gulieva/. On December 27, 1979, special units of the Soviet Army and the USSR KGB carried out an operation in Kabul to storm the palace of the General Secretary of the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA) Hafizullah Amin, during which he was killed.

The PDPA came to power in Afghanistan after the revolution on April 27, 1978. On April 30, 1978, the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan was proclaimed, the highest authority of which was the Revolutionary Council, headed by the General Secretary of the PDPA Central Committee, Nur Muhammad Taraki. On December 5, 1978, Taraki signed a Treaty of Friendship, Good-Neighborliness and Cooperation with the USSR.

On October 8, 1979, Taraki was killed by conspirators led by his deputy Hafizullah Amin, who declared himself the new head of state. Under Amin, who sought to consolidate his hold on power and carried out mass repressions in the country for this purpose, the PDPA, whose ideology had not previously found a wide response among the traditional population of Afghanistan, increasingly lost its popularity.

The Soviet leadership believed that Afghanistan in such a situation could fall either into the US sphere of influence (Amin was suspected of having connections with the CIA) or fall under the rule of radical Islamists. The strategic importance of Afghanistan was due to its geographical location near the southern borders of the USSR.

For these reasons, the change of the head of Afghanistan began to be considered by the Soviet leadership as a necessary measure. Moscow placed its bet on one of Amin’s opponents, the former Afghan ambassador to Czechoslovakia Babrak Karmal.

On December 12, 1979, the Politburo of the CPSU Central Committee made a secret decision to remove Amin from power. At the beginning of December 1979, a “Muslim” battalion, a special forces detachment of the Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU) numbering more than 500 people, was transferred to the Bagram airbase (Afghanistan). It was formed from Soviet military personnel of Central Asian origin and was fully equipped with Afghan military uniforms. The detachment was introduced into the security system of the Taj Beg Palace - the residence of Hafizullah Amin. The main goal of the battalion was to cover the planned assault.

On December 25, 1979, at “numerous requests from the Afghan leadership,” the USSR sent a limited contingent of troops to Afghanistan.

The operation to capture the Taj Beg Palace, called "Storm-333", was developed and approved by the leadership of the KGB and the USSR Ministry of Defense. On December 27, 1979, a reception was organized at the Taj Beg residence. According to one version, before the assault began, KGB agents attempted to poison the invited guests. However, Amin was provided with medical assistance by Soviet doctors who were not aware of the operation to eliminate him.

After this, it was decided to begin the assault. The Taj Beg Palace was guarded by about 2.5 thousand soldiers.

On the Soviet side, special forces of the USSR KGB "Zenit" and "Grom", a "Muslim" battalion, paratroopers of the 345th parachute regiment and an anti-tank platoon were involved. The total number of participants in the operation on the Soviet side was about 700 people. The operation was led by KGB Colonel Grigory Boyarinov.

The assault on the palace began at about seven o'clock in the evening and lasted 45 minutes.

Special forces soldiers moved towards the residence in armored personnel carriers and infantry fighting vehicles. Taj Bek was located on a hill from which all the entrances to the residence were clearly visible, so on the approaches to it, a column of armored vehicles came under heavy fire. Under these conditions, the special forces had to land and begin the assault. The shelling of the palace was carried out from Shilka anti-aircraft installations under the cover of a “Muslim” battalion. A group of fighters led by Colonel Boyarinov managed to reach the entrance to the palace and throw grenades at the lobby. After this, a fierce battle with Amin’s personal guard took place inside the building.

In addition to Hafizullah Amin, two of his sons were killed during the assault. The Afghans lost about 350 people in the battle. On the Soviet side, 11 people were killed (including Colonel Boyarinov and five KGB special forces soldiers), 38 were injured of varying severity. Simultaneously with the capture of Amin's palace, the 345th Airborne Regiment, with the help of KGB special forces, in Kabul captured the buildings of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the State Security Service, the general headquarters, a communications center, and other strategic objects.

The goal set by the USSR was achieved - Babrak Karmal, loyal to the Soviet leadership, became the highest state and party leader of Afghanistan. Under him, by February 1980, the deployment of the main contingent of Soviet troops was completed, which left the territory of Afghanistan only on May 15, 1988.

In April 1980, by a closed Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, Boyarinov was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. In addition to him, four participants in the assault received this title - police captain Mikhail Isakov, Major General Viktor Karpukhin, captain 1st rank Evald Kozlov (officer of the Zenit special forces detachment) and Major General Vasily Kolesnik (headed the “Muslim” battalion) . About four hundred KGB officers involved in the operation were awarded orders and medals. Three hundred officers and soldiers of the "Muslim" battalion also received government awards.

The decision to eliminate Amin and send Soviet troops into Afghanistan was made at a meeting of the Politburo of the CPSU Central Committee on December 12, 1979. Section 8 of Directorate “S” (illegal intelligence) of the KGB of the USSR developed the operation “Agat” to destroy Amin, which was part of a larger invasion plan.

On December 14, a battalion of the 345th Guards Separate Parachute Regiment was sent to Bagram to reinforce the battalion of the 111th Guards Parachute Regiment of the 105th Guards Airborne Division; on December 20, it was transferred from Bagram to Kabul “Muslim battalion”, which became part of the Amin Palace security brigade, which significantly facilitated preparations for the planned assault on this palace. For this operation, they also arrived in Afghanistan in mid-December 2 KGB special groups.

On December 25, the entry of Soviet troops into Afghanistan began. In Kabul, units of the 103rd Guards Airborne Division completed their landing by midday on December 27 and took control of the airport, blocking Afghan aviation and air defense batteries. Other units of this division concentrated in designated areas of Kabul, where they received tasks to blockade the main government institutions, Afghan military units and headquarters, and other important objects in the city and its environs.

The operation plan was approved by representatives of the KGB of the USSR and the Ministry of Defense of the USSR. The actions of the KGB special groups were led by Major General Yu. Drozdov, and the “Muslim battalion” was led by GRU Colonel V. Kolesnik.

The assault participants were divided into two groups: "Thunder"— 24 people (fighters of the Alpha group, commander - deputy head of the group " Alpha" M. M. Romanov) and "Zenith"— 30 people (special reserve officers of the KGB of the USSR, KUOS graduates; commander - Yakov Fedorovich Semenov).

In the “second echelon” there were fighters of the so-called “Muslim battalion” of Major Kh. T. Khalbaev(520 people) and 9th company of the 345th separate guards parachute regiment under the leadership of senior lieutenant Valery Vostrotin (80 people)

The attackers were dressed in Afghan uniforms without insignia with a white bandage on their sleeves. The password for identifying our own people was the shouts “Yasha” - “Misha”.

On the afternoon of December 27, during lunch, H. Amin and many of his guests felt ill, some, including Amin, lost consciousness. This was the result of a special KGB event (the main cook of the palace was Mikhail Talibov, an Azerbaijani, a KGB agent, served by two Soviet waitresses

At 19:10, a group of Soviet saboteurs in a car approached the hatch of the central distribution center of underground communications communications, drove over it and “stalled out.” While the Afghan sentry was approaching them, a mine was lowered into the hatch and after 5 minutes an explosion occurred, leaving Kabul without telephone communication. This explosion was also the signal for the start of the assault.

The assault began at 19:30 local time. Fifteen minutes before the start of the assault, fighters from one of the groups of the “Muslim” battalion, driving through the location of the third Afghan guard battalion, saw that the battalion was on alert. The battle has begun. The Afghans lost more than two hundred people killed. Meanwhile, snipers removed the sentries from the tanks dug into the ground near the palace.

Then two self-propelled anti-aircraft guns ZSU-23-4 "Shilka" of the "Muslim" battalion opened fire on the palace, and two more - on the location of the Afghan tank guard battalion in order to prevent its personnel from approaching the tanks. AGS-17 crews of the “Muslim” battalion opened fire on the location of the second guard battalion, preventing the personnel from leaving the barracks.

On 4 armored personnel carriers, KGB special forces moved towards the palace. One car was hit by Kh. Amin's guards. Units of the “Muslim” battalion provided the outer ring of cover. Having burst into the palace, the stormers “cleared” floor by floor, using grenades in the premises and firing from machine guns. A significant part of the soldiers of the security brigade surrendered (in total, about 1,700 people were captured).

The palace was taken in 40 minutes, but the battle continued for another day.

Simultaneously with the assault on the Taj Bek Palace by KGB special forces groups with the support of paratroopers of the 345th Parachute Regiment, as well as the 317th and 350th regiments of the 103rd Guards Airborne Division, the general headquarters of the Afghan army, a communications center, KHAD buildings and Ministry of Internal Affairs, radio and television. Afghan units stationed in Kabul were blocked (in some places it was necessary to suppress armed resistance).

During the assault on Taj Beg, 5 KGB special forces officers, 6 people from the “Muslim battalion” and 9 paratroopers were killed. The leader of the operation, Colonel Boyarinov, also died. Almost all participants in the operation were wounded
On the opposite side, Kh. Amin and about 200 Afghan guards and military personnel were killed.

In April 1980, about 400 USSR KGB officers related to the operation were awarded orders and medals. About 300 officers and soldiers of the “Muslim” battalion also received government awards.

For the heroism shown in Operation Storm 333, during the storming of Amin’s Taj Beg Palace in Dar-Ul-Aman during the Afghan War, the title of Hero of the Soviet Union was awarded to: Boyarinov, Grigory Ivanovich (PGU KGB USSR) (posthumously) ,Karpukhin, Viktor Fedorovich (PSU KGB USSR), Kozlov, Evald Grigorievich (PGU KGB USSR),
Kolesnik, Vasily Vasilievich (GSh.VS).

Special forces magazine "Brother" https://vk.com/id71921051?w=wall71921051_88511%2Fall

IN ROLLING ALARMS. Today is the Day of Remembrance of all the fallen employees of the Alpha Group

On December 27, 1979, our unit suffered its first irreparable losses: captains were killed during the storming of Amin’s palace (Taj Beg). Dmitry Volkov and Gennady Zudin. At the same time, two Zenit fighters and the KUOS commander, Colonel, did not leave the battle Grigory Boyarinov, who became posthumously Hero of the Soviet Union. suffered losses and "Muslim" battalion of the GRU.

Since that time, Group “A” has not left wars and special operations, without stopping combat duty for a single minute. Our losses at the moment are thirty dead employees and more than fifty dead Alpha veterans.

...In the summer of 1999, we widely celebrated the 25th anniversary of Group “A” in the Kremlin. On this occasion, a festive issue of the newspaper “Spetsnaz of Russia” was published. Editor-in-Chief Pavel Evdokimov almost by force forced Vladimir Nikolaevich Shiryaev, our ideologist and main organizer, to give one of his poems for publication - "Hymn to Alpha". And it was printed at the same time, but, however, without a signature.

On December 27, at the capital’s Khudozhestvenny cinema, where the 20th anniversary of the storming of Amin’s palace was celebrated, this poem was performed by People’s Artist of the USSR Vasily Semenovich Lanovoy. The hall burst into applause. But again, almost no one knew the creator of these chiseled and proud lines.
The authorship was revealed only in June 2010 at the wake of Vladimir Nikolaevich Shiryaev, when Pavel Evdokimov, having told the backstory, read these verses in the ensuing silence - they came to us like the light of an extinguished star.

Born by Heaven for feats of arms
In the name of the great destiny of celebration,
The hope of salvation is in the sound of alarm bells
Russia preserves the bright face of the Divine.

The successor of the path is the sanctified brotherhood,
From forged flesh a mighty squad
The kingdom of heaven looks with hope,
We make a parade over the abyss of evil.

Where the cherished truth is crucified by darkness
We walk adamantly, united in a row;
The banners bear the proud name - “Alpha”
Under the onslaught of souls, hell opens up.

The glory of victory is bitter and beautiful,
Ascetics' valor will be remembered for centuries.
We are Russians
Russians!
Russia is with us!
And that means
And strength
And God
Forever!

They are about all of us, veterans and current employees! A real Hymn to “Alpha” and the entire heroic domestic special forces, which in recent decades has become one of the positive symbols of Russia.
And it is no coincidence that the same verses, read by the legendary Soviet announcer Igor Kirillov, opened the celebrations on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the International Association of Special Forces Veterans "Alpha", held in the fall of 2012 in the capital's Crocus City Hall. There were different options and proposals, but I am glad that we managed to convince everyone who was involved in organizing the anniversary that it was the verse of Vladimir Nikolaevich Shiryaev that best reflects the very essence of the Alpha Group Commonwealth.

We remember everyone who died and who died... Our fallen are like sentries! Thank you for being with us...

...At the end of May 2000, the Kommersant newspaper shared a sensation: “According to Kommersant information, the leader of the Afghan Northern Alliance, Ahmad Shah Massoud, is preparing an operation against the bases of Islamic militants located in Taliban-controlled territory of Afghanistan. Its estimated start time is June 8-10. The operation will most likely involve Russian combat and transport aviation, as well as special forces of the GRU and FSB, including the legendary Alpha group.”
Of course, no active special forces employees went “across the river,” but a year later, the following sweeping inscription appeared on a flight of stairs at the Taj Beg:

"We're back
Moscow — Kabul
"Alpha"
1979 - 2001".

Memory and glory to you, participants in the capture of Kabul! And to everyone who survived and who was brought home in zinc coffins. You are the pride of our country and a reproach to politicians who are accustomed to using people in uniform as bargaining chips on the chessboard of the Great Game.

There are only a few secret service operations written in history in gold. This operation was carried out by the KGB and the Soviet army in Taj Beg, the palace of the Afghan leader Hafizullah Amin.
On December 27, 1979, at 19:30, the force phase began - KGB special forces, GRU special forces and a special Muslim battalion went into battle.

At the beginning of December, a special group of the KGB of the USSR “Zenit” (30 people each) arrived at the air force base in Bagram, and on December 23 the special group “Grom” (30 people) was transferred. They operated under these code names in Afghanistan, but in the Center they were called differently. For example, the group “Thunder” - division “A”, which later became widely known as “Alpha”. The unique group “A” was created on the personal instructions of Yu.V. Andropov and prepared to carry out anti-terrorism activities. They were helped by a Muslim battalion - 520 people and an airborne company - 87 people.
The security system of the Taj Beg Palace was organized carefully and thoughtfully. Hafizullah Amin’s personal guard, consisting of his relatives and especially trusted people, served inside the palace. They also wore a special uniform, different from other Afghan soldiers: white bands on their caps, white belts and holsters, white cuffs on the sleeves. They lived in close proximity to the palace in an adobe building, next to the house where the headquarters of the security brigade was located (later, in 1987-1989, it would house the Operational Group of the USSR Ministry of Defense). The second line consisted of seven posts, each of which had four sentries armed with a machine gun, grenade launcher and machine guns. They were changed every two hours.
The outer guard ring was formed by the deployment points of the guard brigade battalions (three motorized infantry and a tank). They were located around Taj Bek at a short distance. At one of the dominant heights, two T-54 tanks were buried, which could freely shoot the area adjacent to the palace with direct fire from cannons and machine guns. In total, there were about 2.5 thousand people in the security brigade. In addition, an anti-aircraft regiment was located nearby, armed with twelve 100-mm anti-aircraft guns and sixteen anti-aircraft machine gun mounts (ZPU-2), as well as a construction regiment (about 1 thousand people armed with small arms). There were other army units in Kabul, in particular, two divisions and a tank brigade.

The main role in the initial period of the Soviet military presence in the DRA was assigned to “special forces”. Indeed, in fact, the first military action in Operation Storm-333, which was carried out on December 27 by special forces groups of the USSR KGB and military units of army special forces, was the capture of the Taj Beg Palace, where the residence of the head of the DRA was located, and the removal of Hafizullah Amin from power.
The attackers were dressed in Afghan uniforms with white armbands; the friend-foe identification password was the shout “Yasha - Misha.”

The Muslim battalion was created from soldiers and officers from Central Asia (Tajiks, Uzbeks, Turkmens). During the selection, special attention was paid to physical training, only those who had served for half a year or a year were involved, the principle was voluntariness, but if there were not enough specialists, a good military expert could be enrolled in the detachment without his consent.

On the morning of the 27th, concrete preparations began for the assault on the palace of Kh. Amin. The KGB officers had a detailed plan of the palace (location of rooms, communications, electrical networks, etc.). Therefore, by the beginning of Operation Storm-333, special forces from the “Muslim” battalion and KGB special groups thoroughly knew the target of capture: the most convenient routes of approach; guard duty regime; the total number of Amin's security and bodyguards; location of machine gun nests, armored vehicles and tanks; the internal structure of the rooms and labyrinths of the Taj Beg Palace; placement of radiotelephone communication equipment, etc. Before storming the palace in Kabul, the KGB special group had to blow up the so-called “well”, but in fact the central secret communication center with the most important military and civilian facilities of the DRA. Assault ladders, equipment, weapons and ammunition were being prepared. The main thing is secrecy and secrecy.
On the morning of December 27, Yu. Drozdov and V. Kolesnik, according to the old Russian custom, before the battle, washed in the bathhouse and changed their linen. Then they once again reported their readiness to their superiors. B.S. Ivanov contacted the Center and reported that everything was ready. Then he handed the receiver of the radiotelephone to Yu.I. Drozdov. Yu.V. spoke. Andropov: “Will you go yourself? I’m not taking risks in vain, think about your safety and take care of people.” V. Kolesnik was also reminded once again not to take risks in vain and take care of people.
The detachment, which, due to its size, was called a battalion, consisted of 4 companies. The first company received the BMP-1, the second and third BTR-60pb, the fourth company was an armament company, it included an AGS-17 platoon (which had just appeared in the troops), a platoon of Lynx infantry jet flamethrowers and a platoon of sappers. The detachment had all the relevant rear units: platoons of automotive and software support, communications, and an additional platoon of Shilka self-propelled guns was assigned to the battalion.

A translator was assigned to each company, but, given the national composition, their services were almost never used; all Tajiks, half of the Uzbeks and some of the Turkmen knew Farsi, one of the main languages of Afghanistan. Curiosity came up with only a vacancy for an anti-aircraft gunner officer; it was not possible to find the necessary person of the required nationality, and the dark-haired Russian captain Pautov was hired for this position, who, when silent, did not stand out in the crowd. The detachment was headed by Major Kh. Khalbaev.

During lunch, the PDPA General Secretary and many of his guests suddenly felt unwell. Some lost consciousness. Kh. Amin also completely “disconnected”. His wife immediately called the commander of the Presidential Guard, Jandad, who began calling the Central Military Hospital (Charsad Bistar) and the Soviet Embassy clinic to summon help. The products and pomegranate juice were immediately sent for examination. The suspected cooks were detained. The security regime has been strengthened. However, the main perpetrators of this action managed to escape.
Kh. Amin lay in one of the rooms, stripped to his underpants, with his jaw slack and his eyes rolled back. He was unconscious and in a severe coma. Died? They felt the pulse - a barely perceptible beat. Dying? Quite a significant amount of time will pass before Kh. Amin’s eyelids tremble and he comes to his senses, then asks in surprise: “Why did this happen in my house? Who did it? Accident or sabotage?

The ZSU-23-4 Shilki anti-aircraft self-propelled guns were the first to open fire on the palace with direct fire at the command of Captain Pautov, bringing down a sea of shells on it. AGS-17 automatic grenade launchers began firing at the location of the tank battalion, preventing the crews from approaching the tanks. Units of the “Muslim” battalion began moving to their destination areas. According to the plan, the first to advance to the palace was the company of Senior Lieutenant Vladimir Sharipov, on whose ten infantry fighting vehicles there were several subgroups of special forces from “Grom” led by O. Balashov, V. Emyshev, S. Golov and V. Karpukhin. Their general leadership was carried out by Major Mikhail Romanov. Major Y. Semenov with his Zenit in four armored personnel carriers was supposed to advance to the end of the palace, and then rush up the pedestrian stairs that led up to the Taj Beck. At the facade, both groups had to connect and act together.
Rocket infantry flamethrower "Lynx".

However, at the last moment the plan was changed and the Zenit subgroups, the senior ones of which were A. Karelin, B. Suvorov and V. Fateev, were the first to advance to the palace building on three armored personnel carriers. Their general management was carried out by Ya. Semenov. The fourth Zenit subgroup, led by V. Shchigolev, ended up in the Thunder column. The combat vehicles knocked down the outer security posts and rushed along the only road, which climbed steeply up the mountain in a serpentine path leading to the area in front of the palace. The road was heavily guarded, and other approaches were mined. As soon as the first car passed the turn, heavy machine guns fired from the building. All the ears of the armored personnel carrier that went first were damaged, and Boris Suvorov’s combat vehicle was immediately knocked out and caught fire. The subgroup commander himself was killed, and the personnel were injured. Having jumped out of the armored personnel carriers, the Zenit soldiers were forced to lie down, and began to shoot at the windows of the palace, and also began to climb up the mountain using assault ladders.

At quarter past seven in the evening, strong explosions occurred in Kabul. It was a KGB subgroup from Zenit (group senior Boris Pleshkunov) that undermined the so-called “well” of communications, cutting off the Afghan capital from the outside world. The explosion was supposed to be the beginning of the assault on the palace, but the special forces began a little earlier.

The “Grom” subgroups also immediately came under heavy fire from heavy machine guns. The breakthrough of the groups took place under hurricane fire. The special forces quickly jumped out onto the platform in front of the Taj Beck. The commander of the first subgroup of “Grom” O. Balashov was pierced by shrapnel in his bulletproof vest, but in a fever, at first he did not feel pain and rushed along with everyone to the palace, but then was nevertheless sent to the medical battalion. Captain 2nd Rank E. Kozlov, still sitting in the infantry fighting vehicle, barely had time to put his leg out before he was immediately shot through.

The first minutes of the battle were the most difficult. KGB special groups went to storm the Taj Beg, and the main forces of V. Sharipov’s company covered the outer approaches to the palace. Other units of the “Muslim” battalion provided an outer ring of cover. “Shilkas” hit the Taj Beg, 23-mm shells bounced off the walls like rubber ones. Hurricane fire continued from the windows of the palace, which pinned the special forces to the ground. And they rose only when “Shilka” suppressed the machine gun in one of the windows of the palace. This did not last long - maybe five minutes, but it seemed to the fighters that an eternity had passed. Y. Semenov and his fighters rushed forward to the building, where at the entrance to the palace they met with M. Romanov’s group.

When the fighters advanced to the main entrance, the fire intensified even more, although it seemed that this was no longer possible. Something unimaginable was happening. Everything was mixed up. While still on the approaches to the palace, G. Zudin was killed, S. Kuvylin, A. Baev and N. Shvachko were wounded. In the very first minutes of the battle, Major M. Romanov had 13 people wounded. The group commander himself was shell-shocked. Things were no better at Zenit. V. Ryazanov, having received a through wound in the thigh, bandaged his leg himself and went on the attack. Among the first to break through to the building were A. Yakushev and V. Emyshev. Afghans threw grenades from the second floor. As soon as he began to climb the stairs, A. Yakushev fell, struck by grenade fragments, and V. Emyshev, who rushed to him, was seriously wounded in his right arm. It later had to be amputated.

The battle in the building itself immediately took on a fierce and uncompromising character. A group consisting of E. Kozlov, M. Romanov, S. Golov, M. Sobolev, V. Karpukhin, A. Plyusnin, V. Grishin and V. Filimonov, as well as Y. Semenov with fighters from Zenit V. Ryazantsev, V. Bykovsky and V. Poddubny burst through the window on the right side of the palace. G. Boyarinov and S. Kuvylin at this time disabled the palace communications center. A. Karelin, V. Shchigolev and N. Kurbanov stormed the palace from the end. The special forces acted desperately and decisively. If people did not leave the premises with their hands raised, the doors were broken down and grenades were thrown into the room. Then they fired indiscriminately from machine guns. Sergei Golov was literally “cut” by grenade fragments, then as many as 9 of them were counted in him. During the battle, Nikolai Berlev had his machine gun's magazine smashed by a bullet. Luckily for him, S. Kuvylin was nearby and managed to give him his horn in time. A second later, the Afghan guardsman who jumped out into the corridor would most likely have managed to shoot first, but this time he was late with the shot. P. Klimov was seriously wounded.

In the palace, the officers and soldiers of H. Amin's personal guard, his bodyguards (about 100 - 150 people) resisted desperately, not surrendering. The “Shilkas” again transferred fire and began to hit the Taj-Bek and the area in front of it. A fire started in the building on the second floor. This had a strong morale impact on the defenders. However, as the special forces advanced to the second floor of the Taj Beg, the shooting and explosions intensified. The soldiers from Amin's guard, who at first mistook the special forces for their own rebel unit, heard Russian speech and obscenities, surrendered to them as a higher and just force. As it turned out later, many of them were trained at the airborne school in Ryazan, where, apparently, they memorized Russian obscenities for the rest of their lives. Y. Semenov, E. Kozlov, V. Anisimov, S. Golov, V. Karpukhin and A. Plyusnin rushed to the second floor. M. Romanov had to stay downstairs due to a severe concussion. The special forces attacked fiercely and harshly. They fired indiscriminately from machine guns and threw grenades into all the rooms they came across.

When a group of special forces consisting of E. Kozlov, Y. Semenov, V. Karpukhin, S. Golov, A. Plyusnin, V. Anisimov, A. Karelin and N. Kurbanov, throwing grenades and firing continuously from machine guns, burst onto the second floor of the palace , then they saw Kh. Amin lying near the bar in Adidas shorts and a T-shirt. A little later, V. Drozdov joined this group.

The battle in the palace did not last long (43 minutes). “Suddenly the shooting stopped,” recalled Major Yakov Semenov, “I reported to the leadership over the Voki-Toki radio station that the palace had been taken, many were killed and wounded, the main thing was over.”

In total, five people in the KGB special groups died directly during the storming of the palace, including Colonel G.I. Boyarinov. Almost everyone was wounded, but those who could hold weapons in their hands continued to fight.

The experience of storming the Taj Beg Palace confirms that in such operations only highly trained professionals can successfully complete the task. And even for them it is very difficult to act in extreme conditions, and what can we say about untrained eighteen-year-old boys who really don’t know how to shoot. However, after the dissolution of the FSB special forces and the departure of professionals from government service, it was untrained young men who were sent to Chechnya in December 1994 to seize the so-called presidential palace in Grozny. Now only mothers mourn their sons.

By a closed Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, a large group of KGB employees of the USSR (about 400 people) were awarded orders and medals. Colonel G.I. Boyarinov was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union (posthumously) for the courage and heroism shown in providing international assistance to the fraternal Afghan people. The same title was awarded to Colonel V.V. Kolesnik, E.G. Kozlov and V.F. Karpukhin. Major General Yu.I. Drozdov was awarded the Order of the October Revolution. Commander of the “Grom” group, Major M.M. Romanov was awarded the Order of Lenin. Lieutenant Colonel O.U. Shvets and Major Ya.F. Semenov was awarded the Order of the Red Banner of Battle.

Commanders

Grigory Boyarinov † Vadim Kirpichenko

Hafizullah Amin †

Strengths of the parties Losses

Storming of Amin's palace- a special operation codenamed “Storm-333”, preceding the entry of Soviet troops and the beginning of the Afghan War of 1979-1989. , during which special forces of the KGB of the USSR and the Soviet Army in the Taj Beg residence 34.454828 , 69.113344 34°27′17.38″ n. w. 69°06′48.04″ E. d. / 34.454828° N. w. 69.113344° E. d.(G) (O) in the Dar-Ul-Aman district of Kabul on December 27, Afghan President Hafizullah Amin was killed. His two young sons and daughter also died during the assault. [source?]

The decision to eliminate Amina

The development of the situation in Afghanistan in 1979 - armed uprisings of the Islamic opposition, mutinies in the army, internal party struggle and especially the events of September 1979, when the leader of the PDPA N. Taraki was arrested and then killed on the orders of H. Amin, who removed him from power - caused serious concern among the Soviet leadership. It warily followed Amin's activities at the head of Afghanistan, knowing his ambitions and cruelty in the struggle to achieve personal goals. Under Amin, terror unfolded in the country not only against Islamists, but also against members of the PDPA, who were supporters of Taraki. The repression also affected the army, the main support of the PDPA, which led to a drop in its already low morale, causing mass desertion and rebellion. The Soviet leadership was afraid that a further aggravation of the situation in Afghanistan would lead to the fall of the PDPA regime and the coming to power of forces hostile to the USSR. Moreover, the KGB received information about Amin’s connections with the CIA in the 1960s and about secret contacts of his emissaries with American officials after the assassination of Taraki.

As a result, it was decided to prepare for the removal of Amin and his replacement with a leader more loyal to the USSR. B. Karmal, whose candidacy was supported by KGB Chairman Yu. Andropov, was considered as such.

When developing the operation to overthrow Amin, it was decided to use Amin’s own requests for Soviet military assistance (in total, from September to December 1979 there were 7 such requests). At the beginning of December 1979, the so-called “Muslim battalion” (GRU special forces unit, specially formed in the summer of 1979 from Soviet military personnel of Central Asian origin to guard Taraki and perform special tasks in Afghanistan) was sent to Bagram.

The decision to eliminate Amin and send Soviet troops into Afghanistan was made at a meeting of the Politburo of the CPSU Central Committee on December 12, 1979.

To position in "A".

1. Approve the considerations and activities outlined by vol. Andropov Yu.V., Ustinov D.F., Gromyko A.A. Allow them to make adjustments of an unprincipled nature during the implementation of these measures. Issues requiring a decision by the Central Committee should be submitted to the Politburo in a timely manner. The implementation of all these activities is entrusted to comrade. Andropova Yu. V., Ustinova D. F., Gromyko A. A.

2. Instruct TT. Andropov Yu.V., Ustinova D.F., Gromyko A.A. to inform the Politburo of the Central Committee about the progress of the planned activities."

On December 25, the entry of Soviet troops into Afghanistan began. In Kabul, units of the 103rd Guards Airborne Division by noon on December 27 completed the landing and took control of the airport, blocking Afghan aviation and air defense batteries. Other units of this division concentrated in designated areas of Kabul, where they received tasks to blockade the main government institutions, Afghan military units and headquarters, and other important objects in the city and its environs. After a skirmish with Afghan soldiers, the 357th Guards Parachute Regiment of the 103rd Division and the 345th Guards Parachute Regiment established control over the Bagram airfield. They also provided security for B. Karmal, who was again taken to Afghanistan with a group of close supporters on December 23.

Participants in the operation

The operation plan was approved by representatives of the KGB of the USSR and the Ministry of Defense of the USSR (B.S. Ivanov, S.K. Magometov), endorsed by Lieutenant General N.N. Guskov (chief of the operational group of the Airborne Forces Headquarters, which arrived in Afghanistan on December 23), General KGB lieutenant V.A. Kirpichenko (deputy head of the KGB PGU), E.S. Kuzmin, L.P. Bogdanov and V.I. Osadchim (resident of the KGB of the USSR). The management of forces and means was carried out from the Mikron control point deployed at the stadium, where Generals Nikolai Nikitovich Guskov, Sultan Kekezovich Magometov, Boris Semenovich Ivanov and Evgeniy Semenovich Kuzmin were located, as well as from the Soviet embassy, where General Vadim Alekseevich Kirpichenko and Colonel Leonid Pavlovich Bogdanov ensured the coordination of their actions and monitored changes in the situation in the country. They were constantly in direct communication with Moscow. The actions of the KGB special groups were led by Major General Yu. Drozdov, and the “Muslim battalion” was led by GRU Colonel V. Kolesnik.

Direct supervision of the assault was carried out by KGB Colonel Grigory Ivanovich Boyarinov, head of the Officer Improvement Course (CUOS) of the KGB of the USSR. The assault participants were divided into two groups: “Thunder” - 24 people. (fighters of the Alpha group, commander - deputy chief of the Alpha group M. M. Romanov) and Zenit - 30 people. (officers of the special reserve of the KGB of the USSR, graduates of KUOS; commander Y. Semenov). In the “second echelon” there were fighters of the so-called “Muslim battalion” of Major Kh. T. Khalbaev (520 people) and the 9th company of the 345th separate guards parachute regiment under the leadership of senior lieutenant Valery Vostrotin (80 people).

The attackers were dressed in Afghan uniforms without insignia with a white bandage on their sleeves. The password for identifying our own people was the shouts “Yasha” - “Misha”.

Storm

On the afternoon of December 27, during lunch, H. Amin and many of his guests felt ill, some, including Amin, lost consciousness. This was the result of a special KGB event. Amin's wife immediately called the commander of the presidential guard, who began calling the Central Military Hospital and the Soviet Embassy clinic to summon help. The products and juice were immediately sent for examination, and the cooks were detained. A group of Soviet doctors and an Afghan doctor arrived at the palace. Soviet doctors, unaware of the special operation, assisted Amin. These events alerted the Afghan guards.

The assault began at 19:30 local time. Fifteen minutes before the start of the assault, fighters from one of the groups of the “Muslim” battalion, driving through the location of the third Afghan guard battalion, saw that an alarm had been declared in the battalion - the commander and his deputies were standing in the center of the parade ground, and the personnel were receiving weapons and ammunition. A car with scouts from the “Muslim” battalion stopped near the Afghan officers, and they were captured, but the Afghan soldiers opened fire after the retreating car. The scouts of the “Muslim” battalion lay down and opened fire on the attacking guard soldiers. The Afghans lost more than two hundred people killed. Meanwhile, snipers removed the sentries from the tanks dug into the ground near the palace.

Although a significant part of the soldiers of the security brigade surrendered (in total about 1,700 people were captured), some of the brigade's units continued to resist. In particular, the “Muslim” battalion fought with the remnants of the third battalion of the brigade for another day, after which the Afghans went into the mountains.

On the night of December 27-28, the new Afghan leader B. Karmal arrived in Kabul from Bagram under the protection of KGB officers and paratroopers. Radio Kabul broadcast an appeal from the new ruler to the Afghan people, in which the “second stage of the revolution” was proclaimed. The Soviet newspaper Pravda wrote on December 30 that “as a result of the rising wave of popular anger, Amin, along with his henchmen, appeared before a fair people’s court and was executed.”

Losses

On the opposite side, Kh. Amin, his two young sons and about 200 Afghan guards and military personnel were killed. The wife of Foreign Minister Sh. Vali, who was in the palace, also died. The widow Amina and their daughter, wounded during the assault, served several years in a Kabul prison, then left for the USSR. [source?]

The killed Afghans, including Amin's two young sons, were buried in a mass grave not far from the palace. Amin was buried there, but separately from the others. There was no tombstone placed on the grave.

Results

Despite the fact that the operation was successful militarily, the very fact of the assassination of the head of state began to be interpreted by Western countries as evidence of the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, and the following leaders of the DRA (Karmal, Najibullah) were called puppet leaders by the leadership of these countries.

Awards

In April 1980, about 400 USSR KGB officers related to the operation were awarded orders and medals. About 300 officers and soldiers of the “Muslim” battalion also received government awards.

For the heroism shown in Operation Storm 333, the storming of Amin's Taj Beg Palace in Dar-Ul-Aman during the Afghan War, the title of Hero of the Soviet Union was awarded to:

Memories of participants

Deputy head of the operation, reserve colonel Oleg Balashov:

We knew that we were practically going to death, but “it had to be done.” I don’t want to say that we were afraid, but it was somehow uncomfortable. They gave us 100 grams of the mandatory military stuff. But, roughly speaking, they simply did not climb... A German helmet saved my life. One bullet hit the triplex. Held. The other two are in the sphere. I survived. Well, the fact that the body armor was all in tatters is already nonsense... 80% of our soldiers were wounded, but we did our job.

Notes

Links

S. Golov. With faith in victory
V. Kolesnik. How Amin's Palace was taken
Story by reserve colonel Oleg Balashov (deputy assault commander) (BBC audio recording)
Vladimir Snegirev. Confession of a little man. Former USSR KGB chief Vladimir Kryuchkov in an exclusive interview with RG Rossiyskaya Gazeta - Week No. 3522, July 9, 2004
Vladimir Snegirev. Time "H" for country "A". Our observer tried to reconstruct the chain of events, the final of which was the storming of Amin’s palace “Rossiyskaya Gazeta” - Federal issue No. 3665, December 28, 2004

Afghan War (1979-1989)
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