Storm-333: KGB and Spetsnaz seize Kabul, Soviet-Afghan War 1979

Storm-333 was a Soviet operation to seize Kabul and assassinate Hafizullah Amin, which quickly devolved into a ten-year counter-insurgency. It was a success, and its lessons learned are still valid today, as seen in the seizure of Crimea in 2014. This is the most detailed and compelling study of the operation available in English.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 80 pages
Publication date: 18 March 2021
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

Storm-333, the operation to seize Kabul and assassinate Afghan leader Hafizullah Amin, was a remarkable success that marked the beginning of a catastrophic blunder. It heralded the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, an operation intended to be a brief, largely symbolic display of force, but which quickly descended into a grueling ten-year counter-insurgency that Moscow was unable to win. Despite initial doubts that it would be an impossible feat, Storm-333 was a stunning triumph, as a small group of Soviet special forces, drawn from the KGB and the military, managed to seize the heavily fortified presidential palace, neutralize the city's communications and defenses, and open Kabul to occupation. The lessons learned from this operation are still relevant today and have been incorporated into modern Russian military practice, most notably seen in the seizure of Crimea in 2014. Written by a recognized expert on the Soviet security forces, drawing extensively on Russian sources, and fully illustrated with commissioned artwork, this is the most comprehensive and compelling study of this fascinating operation available in English.

Weight: 264g
Dimension: 247 x 185 x 8 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781472841872