February 15 a memorable day in contemporary history: Ghani

KABUL victory day expelling former USSR soldiers from the country, President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani has said that the day is memorable in the contemporary history of Afghanistan, which is full of sacrifices by Afghans.

In a statement from the Presidential Palace, the president said this in his message on the eve of the victory day when the brave people of Afghanistan kicked out former USSR troops from the soil of Afghanistan some 26 years ago.

On May 15, 1988, the invaded former USSR troops started withdrawal from Afghanistan while the pulling out of their forces completed on February 15, 1989.

The invasion of the then red army of Afghanistan lasted nine years, inflicting heavy casualties and damages on Afghan nation and country. Record shows that 1.5 million Afghans refugees were martyred and thousands of others disabled. In addition, over 10 million Afghan refugees migrated to other countries specifically to Pakistan and Iran. 

“The day is memorable in the contemporary history of Afghanistan and I congratulate the brave Mujahideen masses of Afghanistan,” Ghani added.

On this day, Soviet forces invaded Afghanistan, triggering years of violent armed struggle between mujahideen and the occupation forces.

In the years between 1979 and 1988, hundreds of thousands of people were killed, as Soviet forces used their military might to crush the voices of dissent. Millions of people were displaced and forced to flee from the country.

The ruins of war in the form of destroyed residential and commercial buildings in Kabul bear painful testimony to the hegemony and oppression unleashed by Soviet forces on Afghans.

The president called upon people to come forward and contribute to the nation and country’s building and to forge cordial ties with international, regional and neighboring countries.

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