Chapter 105: The Plan of Attack

  "Right, Mr. Mohammad, we are fighting with you! Without you, we would have been killed by the Soviets at the mountain pass." The guerrillas behind Fahim chimed in.

  One cannot forget one's roots, nor can one forget kindness. They all remembered that at the mountain pass they were surrounded by Soviet troops and it was Commander Mukhammad who led the Jalalabad guerrilla fighters to rescue them.

  Although there were only twenty or so people in front of him, this was a good start. It showed that he had already gained their complete trust and they were willing to leave Masood and follow him!

  "Then let us fight shoulder to shoulder, drive out the Soviets and shed our last drop of blood. Long live the great Afghan guerrillas!" Muhammad shouted.

  "Hurray! Hurray!" Everyone followed suit, cheering together. This cheer flew over the high mountains of Panjshir and spread across the entire Pamir Plateau...

  Jalalabad

  At every intersection, there were still roadblocks, but the soldiers in charge of checking had changed from government troops to Soviet soldiers. They strictly checked everyone entering and leaving Jalalabad, so strictly that almost only people who stripped naked could enter smoothly without being checked.

  However, after entering, it can be seen that the Soviet military camp is empty. When the Soviets launched a siege of the Panjshir region, some soldiers were mobilized from here. After the siege was over, those soldiers remained in Bagram and did not return to Jalalabad. The current 117th Regiment has only about half of its personnel guarding the city, plus an understaffed government army.

  The combat effectiveness of the government army is obvious, following in the footsteps of the Soviets, it's okay to fight a winning battle, but as soon as the situation becomes slightly unfavorable, they will quickly flee.

  Every move in Jalalabad is being closely monitored. Meanwhile, guerrilla forces are gathering continuously in the western mountainous areas.

  It's already past summer, except at noon. The scorching sun will make people feel the same sweltering heat as in summer, but it gets cool in the morning and evening, and at night, even with a thin blanket, it's hard to fall asleep.

  Sitting on a slope. Muhammad looked at the new recruits of the guerrilla, mastering new combat skills, the use of 107 rockets, Stinger anti-aircraft missiles and complex Tochka missiles, all made these Tajiks feel fresh, they practiced very seriously.

  "Captain." Just as Muhammad was casually watching the training, a voice came from beside his ear. Muhammad turned around and saw Osama and Khwaja with serious faces.

  "How is it?" Muhammad asked.

  "We've all figured it out, many guerrilla teams are gathering west of Jalalabad, we don't dare to get too close, estimated that the number should be over a thousand. However... many of their weapons are very outdated, and there is no heavy weaponry." Khwaja said, he remembered using the sniper rifle's scope to observe those guerrillas, and was very pessimistic about this operation.

  "There is no unusual movement on the Jalalabad side, it's still the same as before, and the news brought back by Dana is also the same. However, the vigilance of the Soviets has increased a lot, and the sentry posts have been replaced with Soviet soldiers. Moreover, every time they patrol, they bring two to three times the normal amount of ammunition." Osama said.

  When patrolling, do you also bring so much ammunition? Suddenly, Muhammad's heart tightened, this is a dangerous signal, which foretells the Soviets. There must have been some premonition, otherwise, they wouldn't be carrying such heavy ammunition while patrolling in the city. The usual patrol soldiers would only carry half or two to three bases of ammunition, which is typical of defensive combat equipment.

  It would be even more dangerous if the Soviets found out about the alliance's offensive against Jalalabad, Muhammad stood up and walked back and forth on the hillside.

  "We organized guerrilla groups, taking enough food and ammunition for half a month, and we also moved towards Jalalabad," Mohammad said.

  Although Mohammad was disgusted with the coalition's paper tiger warfare, he knew he could not stand idly by and watch the resistance forces be consumed in Jalalabad.

  "Durrani, you take fifty men, I have another task for you!" Muhammad gave a solemn order to Durrani.

  The night color is vast and the surroundings are hazy, fog has risen!

  Mountainous areas are cold and humid, but the water vapor is very small. Such fog is rarely encountered a few times a year, and tonight, it actually started to fog! It's really God's blessing!

  Masood gazed at the fog around him, and his heart became even more determined.

  Around thirty people gathered together, all of them were leaders of various guerrilla teams.

  What Nikubdin said about 2,000 people is an exaggeration. Since Muhammad's nearly 200 men did not participate, there are only a little over 1,000 here, divided into more than 30 guerrilla groups. The larger guerrilla groups have 50-60 people, while the smaller ones have only a dozen or so. Among these guerrilla groups, Masood's Panjshir guerrilla group is still the largest, with nearly 150 men!

  If it were not for the Soviet siege, without the ambush of the Chinese and Soviet people, Masud's guerrilla team had already reached a scale of three to four hundred people. Even now, seeing Masud, all the guerrilla commanders are very respectful and unanimously recommended Masud as the commander-in-chief of this operation.

  "Tonight's fog is just the opportunity we need!" said a guerrilla leader. "The Soviets are checking too tightly, and the other day when we tried to sneak into Jalalabad, there was no chance. Although there was no internal response, with this thick fog, we can definitely get in easily!"

  "Right, as long as we break in, we can occupy the city and fight a street battle with the Soviets! The Soviet heavy weapons will not be able to play their advantages!"

  "Yes, today is an opportunity given by Allah, we can't miss it!"

  Masood looked at the surrounding guerrilla leaders who were discussing and was very satisfied. Today is a great opportunity!

  "We have decided that at half past ten, we will leave the mountains and launch an attack on Jalalabad at midnight! We will break through the Soviet roadblocks, storm into Jalalabad, occupy the government building, occupy the 117th Regiment's garrison, and capture all the Soviet soldiers!" Masood said.

  Mohammad may have left, but he gave Masood a reminder to prevent the Soviets from jumping over the wall. If they really use destructive weapons like thermobaric bombs against the guerrillas, Masood thought of new ways - capture the Soviets!

  As long as there are Soviet soldiers in the city, will the Soviets dare to bomb? They would kill their own soldiers!

  "At the same time, we will also leave a hundred men to guard the highway between Kabul and Jalalabad, to prevent Soviet reinforcements," Massoud said.

  When Masood said that, Nikubdin immediately frowned: "Masood, dividing the army is a big taboo. We must use the most fierce offensive to quickly capture Jalalabad! If we can't control the situation in Jalalabad before dawn, we will face danger."

  "But what if the Kabul faction sends reinforcements?" Masood asked Nikubdin.

  "With such a thick fog, the Soviet convoy can't move forward quickly. Before dawn, they absolutely won't be able to catch up. What we need to do is to resolve all battles before dawn. Our troops are not abundant, dividing them to guard the highway is meaningless." Nikgubdin said, after finishing, looked at the rest of the guerrilla leaders and said: "Who among you is willing to lead men to guard the highway?"

  No one is willing, they are all working together to prepare for a big attack on the Soviets in Jalalabad. The envoy of the alliance was right, with such thick fog, even if troops were dispatched from Kabul or Bagram, it would be slow like a snail and impossible to arrive.

  "Alright, let's launch a full-scale attack! Everyone, we'll regroup in Jalalabad and carry out our original plan, with each guerrilla unit occupying its designated target area. You must be familiar with the city of Jalalabad, don't mistake your targets, and the thick fog will also be a challenge for us."

  Masud followed Nikkhubdin's arrangement, perhaps he was right. In such a big fog, the actions of the Soviets would be slow, while their own side needed to concentrate all their strength on the attack on Jalalabad.

  The order was quickly passed down and every guerrilla member who received the order became excited, today they would finally launch a counterattack!

  They wiped their guns, checking the limited ammunition. Once this battle was over, they would be able to seize enough Soviet weapons. At that time, throw away these broken guns and replace them with Soviet AK-74! It would be great if they could capture a round drum RPK machine gun.

  At 10 o'clock, some guerrilla troops could no longer hold back their excitement and began to move out of their bases in the direction of Jalalabad.

  As various guerrilla units continued to move out, Masood's face was gloomy, and he could only let his own troops move out.

  Commanding so many guerrilla troops is completely different from commanding this one guerrilla troop. For example, those self-proclaimed guerrilla commanders who order their troops to move out early are not just trying to get more spoils of war? They're afraid that if they go late, there won't be any battles to fight and therefore no spoils to divide.

  Masood suddenly found himself making a very serious mistake. Without strict discipline, no matter how many people there were, they would still be a mob.

  In the thick fog, they could only follow the people in front of them, occasionally bumping into the person in front of them, and the scene was a bit chaotic.

  Masood carried his own rifle and walked in the middle of the team. His eyes, however, kept flashing back to Muhammad's words.

  "What do we have? Only rifles, rocket launchers! What do the Soviets have? Planes, cannons, tanks!"

  "Even if you take Jalalabad, can you stop the Soviet counterattack?"

  Masood shook his head hard, trying to drive these voices out of his mind. In any case, the battle was about to begin and he had no choice.

  A tank and several infantry fighting vehicles were lined up at the intersection, their turrets facing outward, forming a semicircular defensive position.

  Originally there was only one tank on the roadblock, but when night fell, the infantry fighting vehicles rumbled over and they were waiting in formation.

  PS: PS: Thanks for the reward from that one feeling! Congratulations to that one feeling for becoming the overlord of Southeast Asia! To show appreciation, two more chapters will be added this afternoon!

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