Editing Spetsnaz (section)

==== Soviet–Afghan War ====
{{main|Operation Storm-333}}
[[File:Дворец со стороны правого крыла 27 12 79.jpg|thumb|Soviet special forces surround Tajbeg Palace following the operation.]]
Soviet Spetsnaz forces took part in the [[Soviet–Afghan War]] of 1979–1989 in Afghanistan, usually fighting fast insertion/extraction-type warfare with helicopters. Their most famous operation, [[Operation Storm-333]], was executed on 27 December 1979 which saw Soviet special forces storming the [[Tajbeg Palace]] in Afghanistan and killing Afghan President [[Hafizullah Amin]], his son and over 300 of his personal guards in 40 minutes.<ref name="McCauley2008">{{cite book|last=McCauley|first=Martin|author-link=Martin McCauley (historian)|title=Russia, America and the Cold War, 1949–1991|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=r0V-Oxmy9FQC&pg=PA142|year=2008|publisher=Pearson Longman|isbn=978-1-4058-7430-4|page=142}}</ref> The Soviets then installed [[Babrak Karmal]] as Amin's successor.

The operation involved approximately 660 Soviet operators dressed in Afghan uniforms, including ca. 50 [[KGB]] and [[Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU)|GRU]] officers from the ''[[Alpha Group]]'' and ''[[Vympel#Zenyth|Zenith Group]]''. The Soviet forces occupied major governmental, military and media buildings in [[Kabul]], including their primary target – the [[Tajbeg Palace]].

In the first one and a half years of the war, Spetsnaz units in the form of the 459th special forces company, were exclusively responsible for reconnaissance missions and intelligence gathering for the [[40th Army (Soviet Union)|40th Army]].<ref name="ReferenceB">Сергей Козлов. Книга 3. Афганистан. Звёздный час спецназа. 1979—1989 // Спецназ ГРУ: Очерки истории / под ред. Герасимова Д. М.. — Москва: Русская панорама, 2013. — С. 30, 34—58, 61—81, 92—172, 186—539, 729—735. — 736 с. — 3000 экз. — {{ISBN|978-5-93165-324-2}}.</ref> Aside from reconnaissance, the 459th was also tasked with capturing prisoners, kidnapping enemy agents, and targeted assassination of leaders and field commanders of the Mujahideen.

===== Caravan war =====
{{main|Operation Curtain}}

By 1985, the GRU had expanded its special forces footprint to two Spetsnaz brigades in Afghanistan, comprising just under 5,000 troops. These were the:<ref name="ReferenceB"/>

[[15th Special Purpose Brigade]] – paired up and supported by [[239th Helicopter Squadron]] equipped with [[Mi-24]] (16 units), [[Mi-8]] (16 units), deployment in [[Ghazni]].
* 154th Oospn
* 177th Oospn
* 334th Oospn
* 668th Oospn
[[22nd Separate Guards Special Purpose Brigade|22nd Special Purpose Brigade]] – paired up and supported by [[205th Helicopter Squadron]] equipped with Mi-24 (16 units) Mi-8 (16 units) deployed in [[Lashkar Gah]].
* 173rd Oospn
* 186th Oospn
* 370th Oospn
* 411th Oospn
[[File:Evstafiev-spetsnaz-prepare-for-mission.jpg|thumb|A Soviet Spetsnaz group prepare for a mission in Afghanistan.]]
The Spetsnaz often conducted missions to ambush and destroy enemy supply convoys.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.questia.com/library/journal/1P3-118397339/soviet-special-forces-spetsnaz-experience-in-afghanistan|title= "Soviet Special Forces (Spetsnaz): Experience in Afghanistan" by Gusinov, Timothy – Military Review, Vol. 82, Issue 2, March/April 2002|access-date= 7 October 2015|archive-date= 17 October 2015|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20151017010228/https://www.questia.com/library/journal/1P3-118397339/soviet-special-forces-spetsnaz-experience-in-afghanistan}}</ref> The [[Mujahideen]] had great respect for the Spetsnaz, seeing them as a much more difficult opponent than the typical Soviet conscript soldier. They said that the Spetsnaz-led [[air assault]] operations had changed the complexion of the war. They also credited the Spetsnaz with closing down all the supply routes along the [[Durand Line|Afghan-Pakistani border]] in 1986. In April 1986, the rebels lost one of their biggest bases, at [[Zhawar]] in [[Paktia Province]], to a Soviet spetsnaz air-assault. The Spetsnaz achieved victory by knocking out several rebel positions above the base, a mile-long series of fortified caves in a remote canyon. A successful long-term campaign codenamed [[Operation "Curtain"]] or "Veil", lasted from 1984 to 1988, which aimed to close off the Afghan-Pakistani border and cut off supply routes coming in from Pakistan. The operation caused great distress to the mujahedin war effort, with Spetsnaz units intercepting 990 supply caravans and killing 17,000 insurgents.<ref>«Спецназ на тропе войны». Волков Александр Владиленович. Научный сотрудник музея «Шурави» (недоступная ссылка). Дата обращения 20 октября 2015. Архивировано 20 ноября 2015 года.</ref> For their role in ''Operation Curtain'', the Spetsnaz suffered a total of 570 killed with a further 11 missing.<ref>Алфавитный список погибших военнослужащих частей специального назначения 40-й Армии</ref> Casualty breakdown by unit was:
* 15th Spetsnaz Brigade – 355 killed and 10 missing.
* 22nd Spetsnaz Brigade – 199 killed and one missing.
* 459th Spetsnaz Company – 16 killed.
In May 1986, the Spetsnaz also succeeded in inserting air-assault forces into remote regions in [[Kunar Valley|Konar Valley]] near [[Barikot]] which were previously considered inaccessible to Soviet forces.<ref>{{cite web|last=Tempest|first=Rone|author-link=Rone Tempest|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-05-24-mn-7472-story.html|title=Afghan Rebels Face Tougher Foe in Elite Soviet Commando Units|newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]]|date=24 May 1986|access-date=3 September 2017}}</ref>

===== Alleged conflict with Pakistani commandos =====
{{Main|Operation Magistral}}
It is believed that during the war in Afghanistan, Soviet special forces came in direct conflict with [[Pakistan Army]]'s special forces, the [[Special Service Group]]. This unit was deployed disguised as Afghans, supporting the [[Mujahideen]] fighting the Soviets. A battle reported as having been fought between the Pakistanis and Soviet troops took place in [[Kunar Province]] in March 1986. According to Soviet sources, the battle was actually fought between the GRU's 15th Spetsnaz Brigade, and the Usama Bin Zaid regiment of Afghan Mujahideen under Commander Assadullah, belonging to Abdul rub a-Rasul Sayyaf's faction.<ref name="GrauAhmad Jalali2005">{{cite journal|url=http://fmso.leavenworth.army.mil/documents/Krer-SOF.pdf|last1=Grau|first1=Lester W.|author-link1=Lester W. Grau|last2=Ahmad Jalali|first2=Ali|author-link2=Ali Ahmad Jalali|title=Forbidden Cross-border Vendetta: Spetsnaz Strike into Pakistan during the Soviet-Afghan War|journal=The Journal of Slavic Military Studies|volume=18|issue=4|year=2005|pages=1–2|issn=1351-8046|doi=10.1080/13518040500354943|s2cid=144815708|via=[[Foreign Military Studies Office]] (referenced copy)|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304110537/http://fmso.leavenworth.army.mil/documents/Krer-SOF.pdf|archive-date=4 March 2016}}</ref>
Fighting is also alleged to have taken place during [[Operation Magistral]] where over 200 Mujahideen were killed in a failed attempt to capture the strategic [[Battle for Hill 3234|Hill 3234]] near the Pakistani border from a 39-man Soviet Airborne company.