The British have never fought against the Soviet army, right?
Wrong.
In 1980, Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher had taken over the leadership of the West and the Soviets has invaded Afghanistan; the most crucial battle of the cold war was about to begin. In the high mountain passes of the north-west Frontier and the Hindu Kush, the CIA and its Western allies saw an opportunity to bring the mighty Soviet to its knees.
Their weapon: the Islamic guerrillas of the Afghan Mujahideen.
Their agent: Tom Carew, the first Western agent to link up with the Mujahideen, led a series of daring initiatives inside Afghanistan. His account covers in extraordinary and revealing detail combat action against the Soviet Spetsnaz and Afghan mercenaries; reconnaissance missions leading to the installation of the first West-sponsored training camp for the Mujahideen in Pakistan; and Carew's attempt to hijack an aircraft during a covert arms-buying mission.
During these operations, the author was accepted and befriended by the fundamentalist Mujahideen and became as close to them as any European infidel could ever get. In many ways he was a latter-day Lawrence of Arabia.
Tom Carew later rejoined his unit.
Wry, perceptive and sensitive, Jihad! is a fast-paced account of combat espionage and high adventure, against the backdrop of the last truly wild and lawless country on Earth. It sheds unprecedented light on the sharp edge of the cold war and the conduct of special operations in the modern era.
