Formation Junbish and its military wing, Division 53 started as a “self-defense unit” for the
Sheberghan oil fields in northern Afghanistan, growing to a platoon and then a company until it grew to a division of about 40,000 men by 1989. This division joined the Afghan government and was referred to as
Division 53. In 1988 Junbish forces replaced departing
Soviet Union forces and took control of
Kandahar as well as deploying to
Khost,
Logar,
Ghazni,
Gardez in
Paktika and around
Kabul. Thee units were joined by many defecting
mujaheddin commanders, such as
Rasul Pahlawan,
Dr. Hissamuddin Hissam,
Ghaffar Pahlawan, who were Uzbeks from
Saripul and
Takhar. General
Majid Rozi, an
Afghan Arab Uzbek from
Balkh, and General
Jura Beg, an officer from
Jowzjan, also joined. Most of the joining members were either defectors or from the
Parcham wing of the
People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA).
Massoud and capture of Mazar-e Sharif (1992) In 1992, the new President of Russia,
Boris Yeltsin withdrew aid to the government of
Dr Mohammad Najibullah, Dostum started to enter into negotiations with
Ahmad Shah Massoud. When, on March 19, Najibullah attempted to replace the
Tajik General Momim, with a General Rasul, a
Khalqist Pashtun who commanded the Hairatan garrison, Mumin revolted with Dostum’s support. Dostum, through this, took over control of
Mazar-e Sharif. This resulted in widespread looting. At this point Junbish was the dominant party in
Baghlan,
Samangan,
Balkh,
Jauzjan,
Sar-I Pul and
Faryab.
Battle of Kabul (1992–1994) When the government of Najibullah collapsed in April 1992, Junbish forces entered the city through the road near the airport and within a month held
Tapa Maranjan,
Bala Hisar,
Kabul Airport,
Old Microroian and
Chaman Hozori, putting artillery in the first two of those positions. Furthermore, by controlling the airport they prevented the escape of Najibullah and forced him to take refuge in the United Nations compounds. Furthermore, through defectors from the previous government and his control of the airport, Dostum was able to control jet fighters for a significant portion of the
Battle of Kabul. In May 1992 the command structure had General Majid Rozi as the overall military commander, General
Hamayoon Fauzi in charge of political affairs, General Jura Beg in charge of troop deployments and rotations and General
Aminullah Karim in charge of logistics. Rozi was recalled to Mazar towards the end of 1992 leaving Fauzi in charge. Other major leaders included
Abdul Chiri who controlled a militia regiment, the 54th regiment. Control was mostly maintained from the Naqlia base which was on the road from
Kart-I Nau and
Shah Shahid. In July 1992, Dostum sent a petition to Ahmad Shah Massoud in order to establish a general headquarters to manage and control forces in the area. Despite Massoud rejecting this Dostum created it, creating tensions as a result.
Alliance with Hezb-e Islami Gulbuddin and defeat in Kabul (1994) After increased tensions with
Jamiat-e Islami, Junbish attempted to ally themselves with
Hezb-e Islami Gulbuddin in January 1994. However, this betrayal resulted in Junbish being forced from most of their strongholds in Kabul. Between January and June 1994 some of the fiercest fighting of the war took place, with up to 25,000 people being killed.
Capture of Mazar-e Sharif and expansion in the North The loss in Kabul was countered by the removal of Jamiat forces in Northern Afghanistan. After heavy fighting in Mazar, Jamiat was pushed out although large amounts of reports regarding rape and extrajudicial execution exist regarding this battle. After the capture of Mazar, Dostum concentrated his efforts on strengthening his position in the north.
Defection of General Abdul Malik Pahlawan (1997) In 1996
Rasul Pahlawan was assassinated in June by his bodyguard, allegedly at Dostum’s orders. In 1997, a group of Junbish-i-Milli associated with Rasul’s brother defected under the leadership of General
Abdul Malik Pahlawan. Malik joined the
Taliban and forced Dostum out of the country for 4 months, where he fled to Turkey. However Malik quickly betrayed the Taliban, massacring thousands of Taliban prisoners before being ousted in Taliban bombardment in September 1997. During this time, large amounts of rape and looting were reported, although it is not clear as to what extent this was done by Junbish. Following this Dostum returned to Afghanistan and ousted Malik during a conflict in Faryab. Most of Malik’s forces then defected and rejoined Junbish under Dostum. Forces of Dostum were said to have looted many Pashtoons in Faryab province following this. Dostum was even further weakened however as the road from Herat to Maimana was taken by the Taliban in July 1998, and then Mazar-e Sharif in August.
Fall of the Taliban (2001) Dostum and Junbish were particularly instrumental in the fall of the
Taliban in 2001 under the
Northern Alliance. ==Human rights abuses==