In 1974, Daud’s time before the war, Ahmad Shah Masoud, the militant leader of the Tajiks, attacked Panjsher, his home city in the northern part of Afghanistan. He killed the mayor of that city by the order of ISI (the intelligence service of Pakistan) but was defeated by Daud’s government. He ran to Pakistan at the same time that Hekmat Yar another agent of the ISI attacked Laghman and Sharand in the eastern part of Afghanistan e was defeated also and ran to Pakistan.

Burhanudeen Rabani also went to Pakistan and was the leader of an Islamic group by the name of Jamiat-e -Islami (Islamic Society). Masoud was partially influenced by that group and partially by the Maoists and Marxists, with whom he had a partnership.

In April 1980, Masoud secretly had a good relationship with the Russian KGB. It has been written, in a study called The Tragedy and Valor of Afghan by Alexander Lyakhovsky that it lasted the entire Jihad period. With this contract, he left the main highway of Salang open to the Russian forces, so they could pass and attack his other Afghan Mujahedeen, especially Pashtuns in the south and east.

Masoud was gathering arms from the Russians as they passed on the highway toward Najeeb, to supply the united military of Najeeb until Masoud could build a complete military and intelligence force in Panjsher in 1983. This was exposed The Limited Contingent by Russian general Boris Gromov. Masoud wanted local authority for non-Pashtuns, run by Communism or fundamentalism, both of which were against central Government. But, in Afghanistan, he and his company wanted local authority, in one nation of Afghan and in one small and poor country of Afghanistan.

 Masoud refused to allow his forces to participate in combat operations against the Soviets. This has been confirmed in statement by General Lyakhovsky, Gromov and Varennikov, as well as by Gorbachev. Masoud did fight against Sarandoi (scout) and other DRA forces in order to build up his power base following the Soviet withdrawal. While he contracted with the Soviets, he refused to cooperate with the DRA (Democratic Republic of Afghanistan) regime. He saw Najeeb’s competition for leadership in post-Soviet Afghanistan. He also aspired to partition Afghanistan and to assume leadership of the northern twelve provinces, of course with help of the Soviet military.

For the Soviets, Masoud was a buffer against Taliban encroachment upon the Soviet/CIS states in the north. There is accurate information about Masoud in the book called Afghanistan: Ending the Reign of Soviet Terror by Bruce G. Richardson. It has been published in Farsi and Pashtu.

Masoud is the one who created ethnic prejudice in Afghan society in 1992, in a committee in Chrikar (a province in Afghanistan). He had his hand in pocket as he said, “Who says Pashtuns are not with me?”And then he showed his money and said, “I can buy Pashtuns whenever I want.” But in reality, he lost to a majority of Pashtuns. His committee of Nezar was under the influence of the pro-china and pro Russia Setam group under the leadership of Mahboobullah Koshani, which had official power in Najeeb’s time. One of their men, by the name of Bashir Baghlani, was the voice president in Dr. Najeeb’s government.

After the war with Russia, Masoud promised the Russians, under the influence of Mahboobullah Koshani, that if they came to the castle of power completely, they would not interfere in Chechnya and because of that, he was supported by the Russian in the ethnic war with the Taliban and Pashtun people. Politically, the Russians did not want the Pashtuns to have power in the region, especially fundamental Pashtuns because of the support of Chechnya.

Masoud, contrary to western perception was close, Ideologically to the Muslim Brotherhood, also known as Ekhwani.Between 1992_1995, Masoud smuggled arms to Somalia aboard Arianna jet aircraft from Bagram.For this he was paid ten million dollars by Osama bin Ladin.It was also Masoud/Rabani that provided resident papers for Osama to come to Afghanistan in 1996.But the focus on Masoud must conclude that all during the jihad Masoud’s motive  was working towards expanding his power base in the wake of retreating Soviet forces. He realized that the Soviets would one day leave the country and he worked diligently toward being in a position of political leadership which also encompassed military strength…The Soviet often provided Masoud with artillery and air support when he was fighting against Hezb(party). It is well known that the Soviets envisaged a plan to partition Afghanistan along ethnic lines. the plan coded “Operation Kaskad” was drafted by Leonid Brezhnev and demarcated the North of Afghanistan to Masoud’s control albeit with dictation from Moscow. The central area of Afghanistan was demarcated for the Hazara while the rest of country would remain Pashtun territory. One of many downsides of this plan was that the resources rich north of country would not benefit the majority Pashtuns.Moscow was fearful of Pashtuns majority and rule in Afghanistan and therefore worked to being Masoud in to their clutches in hopes of Tajik rule and hence Russian hegemony in the country.

Beginning 1980, Masoud was on the payroll of the Soviet, Great Britain, US, France, Iran, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkey, and to a lesser degree Israel.

Masoud’s supporters claim he did not leave the country, this is not true.Masoud, during the late 1970 was involved in military operations with the PLO in Lebanon, he was also schooled (Frunze military school) in the soviet union during1985 for a brief time with General V.I.V arennikov, soviet army chief of staf.Details of these saying can be found in Book of “Afghanistan, Ending the Right of Soviet Terror “by Bruce G Richardson, Published by Maverick, Bend Oregan, 1996, 1998, 2004.

Masoud’s fight with the Taliban was not for democracy. It was a completely ethnic war against the Pashtuns. Formally, he had given it the slogan of the “fight against the Pashtuns” in 1992, when he fought another Mujahed, Hekmatyar, on this account. He was favored by eastern and western countries for their interest in the Afghan civil war and Afghanistan. He was especially favored by France, which called him a hero just a year before he was killed by an unknown assailant.

Masoud struggled to complete the minority’s power in northern Afghanistan, and he did succeed in uniting with other minority groups. Treaties were signed with Hazara in Jabil Saraj (a city in north) in 1992 and in Mazar (a province in the north).

Hazaras are the remnants of Gangiz Khan’s soldiers remained in the central part of Afghanistan from hundreds years ago. The Uzbeks and Turkmen were in Afghanistan for a long time; most of them came from Russia during the Communist Revolution. There were also the Parcham and the Setam, both of which were Farsi talkers and pro-Russian and pro china Communists until they fought together against the Pashtuns with Masoud. They made the country’s destiny fall into the hands of Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, India, Russia and other countries in the area such as Iran. They had their men sign the treaty of Mazar with the superpower US. Masoud, as the militant leader of the Northern Alliance, fought against the land, peace and unity.

Lyakhovsky states that during the war with Russia, Masoud’s goal was to divide Afghanistan and bring together all Tajiks in the north and the Tajiks of Tajikistan, to form a Greater Tajikistan over which he would rule. He expected that the Soviets would help him accomplish this, and because of that, he provided security along the Salang highway for the Soviets. He provided security for supplies and communications over what was considered Kabul’s lifeline.

Masoud cheated the Mujahedeen and killed his own men from Panjsher, Afghanistan, in the name of champion Ahmad Jan, who did not want to go along with Masoud’s plan to attack his own people. This man was popular among his people from Panjsher.

Once, the CIA gave Masoud $500,000 to close the Salang highway against supplies going from Russia to Najeeb. Masoud took the money but did not do anything, as he was contracted with Moscow to protect Russia’s interests.

There are many books that expose Masoud’s role as a cheater, including The Main Enemy by Milton Bearden and James Risen, and The Hand of Moscow by Leonid Shebarshin, chief first directorate of the KGB. There is also the Cold War International History Project by the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.