The Northern Alliance, A Brief Introduction
On the basis of the Geneva accord, when the former Soviet Union pulled out its last soldier from Afghanistan on Feb 14, 1989, many observers including the Mujahideen (holy warriors) believed that the puppet communist regime in Kabul would fall within months if not weeks in the face of attacks by the resistance forces and give way to the installation of an Islamic government in Afghanistan. Although this belief did not come true as many had hoped for, it did set out in motion a new wave of struggle for power in post-communist Afghanistan not only among the regional countries but among the various Mujahideen parties as well. Regional countries such as Pakistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Russia and to a lesser extent India and the former Soviet Central Asian Republics bordering Afghanistan were actively seeking the installment of a government in Kabul which would protect their short term and long term interests in the country and the region. On the other hand, internally, among the resistance forces, various factions and parties resorted to both political and military means to position themselves in a situation where they can have either complete or significant control over the country's future government.
Notable among those struggling for power were Ahmad Shah Mas'ud of Jami'at-e Islami Party and Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, the chief of Hezb-e Islami. Both these individuals had been fighting each other for military and political supremacy since the early eighties and the departure of Soviet troops from Afghanistan presented each with fresh opportunity to out-maneuver the other. Mas'ud, despite the fact that other Mujahideen factions and parties had their own power bases in provinces such as Parwan, Baghlan, Takhar and Badakhshan was mostly in control of these areas through a council called Shora-e Nezar (Supervisory Council) which he had established for the purpose of coordinating all the resistance forces under his authority.
When the Soviet troops left Afghanistan, Mas'ud was able to quickly capitalize on the situation and expand the control of Shora-e Nezar forces by capturing areas such as Keran-o Munjan, Kalafgan, Taloqan, etc. in Badakhshan and Takhar provinces. By mid-1991, his power extended over most of the north-eastern provinces including parts of Baghlan, Kunduz, Samangan and Balkh.
Towards the end of 1991, a new politico-military situation arose in the northern parts of Afghanistan, namely the rebellion against the communist President, Najibullah, by General Abdul Rashid Dostam, the head of Najibullah's malitia forces in the north. Dostam was immediately joined by his ally Mansour Naderi, the head of another militia forces controlling the northern parts of the Salang Highway. Mas'ud who was hoping to extend his control over the entire northern Afghanistan took advantage of Dostam's defection and asked him to join him in liberating the northern parts of Afghanistan from Najib's government. Meanwhile, the Iranians, who until this time had no significant influence over the resistance forces, saw the window of opportunity open for establishing a lasting influence on the outcome of affairs in Afghanistan. Behind the scene, Iran by enticing ethnic and linguistic sentiments encouraged Mas'ud, Dostam, and Hezb-e Wahdat, a pro-Shi'a party, to enter into a politico-military alliance. By the beginning of 1992, a new alliance composed of the aforementioned individuals was established under the name of Northern Alliance.
The Northern Alliance was instrumental in bringing down Najib's government in April of 1992. The alliance secretly dealt with some members of the Parcham faction in Najib's government which put it (the alliance) in a position to seize control of Kabul single handedly, circumventing the formation of a Peshawer based tanzeem government. However, by mid-1993, due to a struggle for power between Dostam/Hezb-e Wahdat and Mas'ud, the alliance unofficially disintegrated. But, when the Taliban captured Kabul from Mas'ud's forces in September of 1996, the former foes joined hands once again and resurrected their once defunct Northern Alliance.