Nur Muhammad Taraki
In office April 27, 1978 – September 14, 1979
Preceded by	Mohammed Daoud Khan
Succeeded by	Hafizullah Amin
Born	July 15, 1913(1913-07-15) Ghazni, Afghanistan
Died	September 14, 1979 (aged 66) Kabul, Afghanistan
Political party	People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan

Nur Muhammad Taraki (July 15, 1913 – September 14, 1979) was an Afghan politician. His party, the PDPA, was eventually successful in overthrowing the Afghan monarchy and, after the prior president and his family were murdered in a coup, assumed authority as the next President of Afghanistan from 1978 until he too was overthrown (and thereafter murdered) by one of his rivals in the PDPA in 1979. Image File history File links Nur_Muhammad_Taraki. ... April 27 is the 117th day of the year (118th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 248 days remaining. ... Year 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 257th day of the year (258th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1979 by Smashing Pumpkins. ... This article or section cites very few or no references or sources. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... is the 196th day of the year (197th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1913 (MCMXIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Ghazni (Persian: غزنی , ÄžaznÄ«) is a city in eastern Afghanistan, with an estimated population of 149,998 people. ... is the 257th day of the year (258th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1979 by Smashing Pumpkins. ... For other places with the same name, see Kabul (disambiguation). ... The Peoples Democratic Party of Afghanistan (in Persian: حزب دموکراتيک خلق افغانستان, in Pashto: د افغانستان د خلق دموکراټیک ګوند, PDPA) was a Soviet-aligned Revisionist party that ruled Afghanistan from 1978 to 1991 with the help of 12000 Russian troops. ... is the 196th day of the year (197th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1913 (MCMXIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... is the 257th day of the year (258th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1979 by Smashing Pumpkins. ... The Politics series Politics Portal This box:      A politician is an individual who is a formally recognized and active member of a government, or a person who influences the way a society is governed through an understanding of political power and group dynamics. ... The Peoples Democratic Party of Afghanistan (in Persian: حزب دموکراتيک خلق افغانستان, in Pashto: د افغانستان د خلق دموکراټیک ګوند, PDPA) was a Soviet-aligned Revisionist party that ruled Afghanistan from 1978 to 1991 with the help of 12000 Russian troops. ... Afghanistan has only intermittently been a republic - between 1973-1992 and from 2001 onwards - at other times being governed by a variety of kings, emirs and (under the mujahideen and Taliban regimes in the 1990s) Islamist rulers. ... Year 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar). ... Also: 1979 by Smashing Pumpkins. ...

In the months following the coup, he and other party leaders initiated radical Marxist policies that challenged both traditional Afghan values, in particular issues of land ownership, and well-established power structures in the rural areas. He ruled over a nation with a deep Islamic religious culture and a long history of resistance to any type of strong centralized governmental control.

Early Political Career

On January 1, 1965, the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA) was founded. The PDPA, a communist party in fact if not in name, was established for the primary purpose of gaining parliamentary seats. It was composed of a small group of men, followers of Nur Mohammad Taraki and Babrak Karmal, both avowed Marxist-Leninists with a pro-Moscow orientation. is the 1st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1965 Gregorian calendar. ... The Peoples Democratic Party of Afghanistan (in Persian: حزب دموکراتيک خلق افغانستان, in Pashto: د افغانستان د خلق دموکراټیک ګوند, PDPA) was a Soviet-aligned Revisionist party that ruled Afghanistan from 1978 to 1991 with the help of 12000 Russian troops. ... Babrak Karmal (January 6, 1929 - December 3, 1996) was the third President of Afghanistan (1979 - 1986) during the period of the communist Democratic Republic of Afghanistan. ... Vladimir Lenin in 1920 Leninism is a political and economic theory which builds upon Marxism; it is a branch of Marxism (and it has been the dominant branch of Marxism in the world since the 1920s). ...

Most observers described the 1965 elections as remarkably fair. Taraki was elected to Parliament in 1965, and started one of the first major leftist newspapers, Khalq (Masses), which lasted little more than a month before being silenced by a government ban. Khalq (Masses) was a faction of the Peoples Democratic Party of Afghanistan. ...

In 1967 the PDPA split into two groups: Khalq (Masses) and Parcham (Banner), headed by Nur Muhammad Taraki and Babrak Karmal, respectively. The split reflected deep ethnic, class, and ideological differences. The Khalq faction was more militantly Marxist and somewhat more independent of the Soviet Union than the Parcham faction. Khalq (Masses) was a faction of the Peoples Democratic Party of Afghanistan. ... A communist group in Afghanistan formed in 1967 by USSRs help. ...

President of the Republic

On April 19, 1978 a prominent leftist, Mir Akbar Khyber, was killed by the government of Mohammed Daoud Khan. His death served as a rallying point for the Afghan communists. Fearing a communist coup d'etat, Daoud ordered the arrest of certain PDPA leaders, including Taraki and Babrak Karmal, while placing others, such as Hafizullah Amin, under house arrest. is the 109th day of the year (110th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar). ... This article or section cites very few or no references or sources. ... A coup détat, or simply a coup, is the sudden overthrow of a government, usually done by a small group that just replaces the top power figures. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ...

On April 27, 1978 the coup was initiated, reportedly by Hafizullah Amin while still under house arrest. Mohammed Daoud Khan was killed the next day along with most of his family. The PDPA rapidly gained control and on May 1, Taraki became President. The country was then renamed the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan (DRA), installing a regime that would last, in some form or another, until April 1992. April 27 is the 117th day of the year (118th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 248 days remaining. ... Year 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar). ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... is the 121st day of the year (122nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The Democratic Republic of Afghanistan was the communist governance in Afghanistan between 1978 and 1992. ... Year 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar). ...

Taraki became president, prime minister and General Secretary of the PDPA. However, the rivalry between the Khalq and Parcham factions continued. The Government was divided between President Taraki and Deputy Prime Minister Hafizullah Amin of the Khalq faction against Parcham leaders such as Babrak Karmal and Mohammad Najibullah. Dr. Mohammad Najibullah (Pashto/Persian: ‎ ; born 1947, died September 27, 1996) was the fourth and last President of the communist Democratic Republic of Afghanistan. ...

After three months, President Taraki sent the Parcham leaders to India, Iran and Turkey as ambassadors. Babrak Karmal became the Ambassador to Czechoslovakia and his mistress, Anahita Ratebzad, Ambassador to Yugoslavia, while Mohammad Najibullah became Ambassador to Iran. Taraki then began to purge Parcham members from his government with many being arrested and executed. Yugoslavia (Jugoslavija in the Latin alphabet, Југославија in Cyrillic; English: South Slavia, or literary The Land of South Slavs) describes three political entities that existed one at a time on the Balkan Peninsula in Europe, during most of the 20th century. ...

Barbrak Karmal was recalled but went into hiding with Anahita Ratebzad in the Soviet Union fearing execution if he returned; Muhammad Najibullah followed them. Taraki then stripped them of all official positions. Amin became prime minister on 28 March 1979 with Taraki remaining President. is the 87th day of the year (88th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1979 by Smashing Pumpkins. ...

On December 5, 1978, he sponsored a friendship treaty with the Soviet Union (later used as a pretext for the Soviet invasion). Major uprisings occurred regularly against his government. is the 339th day of the year (340th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar). ...

During its first 18 months of rule, the PDPA brutally imposed a Marxist-style reform program, which ran counter to deeply rooted Afghan traditions. Decrees forcing changes in marriage customs and pushing through an ill-conceived land reform were particularly misunderstood by virtually all Afghans. In addition, thousands of members of the traditional elite, the religious establishment, and the intelligentsia were imprisoned, tortured, or murdered.

Taraki was also responsible for introducing women to political life. A prominent example was Anahita Ratebzad, who was a major Marxist leader and a member of the Revolutionary Council. Ratebzad wrote the famous New Kabul Times editorial (May 28, 1978) which declared: “Privileges which women, by right, must have are equal education, job security, health services, and free time to rear a healthy generation for building the future of the country .... Educating and enlightening women is now the subject of close government attention.” May 28 is the 148th day of the year (149th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar). ...

Taraki as president of Afghanistan attended a conference of the Non-Aligned nations in Havana, Cuba. On his way back he stopped in Moscow to meet with Leonid Brezhnev. Taraki reached Moscow on March 20, 1979 with a formal request for Soviet ground troops. Member states of the Non-Aligned Movement (2005). ... This article is about the capital of Cuba. ... For other uses, see Moscow (disambiguation). ... Brezhnev redirects here. ... For other uses, see Moscow (disambiguation). ... is the 79th day of the year (80th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1979 by Smashing Pumpkins. ...

Alexei Kosygin, then Premier of the USSR, told him: “We believe it would be a fatal mistake to commit ground troops ... if our troops went in, the situation in your country ... would get worse.” Despite this statement Taraki negotiated some armed support: helicopter gunships with Russian pilots and maintenance crews, 500 military advisors, 700 paratroopers disguised as technicians to defend Kabul airport, also significant food aid (300,000 tons of wheat). Aleksey Nikolayevich Kosygin (Алексе́й Никола́евич Косы́гин) (1904 - December 18, 1980) was a politician and administrator in the Soviet Union. ...

Brezhnev further warned Taraki that full Soviet intervention “would only play into the hands of our enemies – both yours and ours.” Brezhnev also advised Taraki to ease up on the drastic social reforms and to seek broader support for his regime. Finally, he advised Taraki to remove Prime Minister Amin, and warned him that Amin was probably preparing an assassination attempt on Taraki. Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev  listen? ( Russian: Леони́д Ильи́ч Бре́жнев) ( December 19, 1906 – November 10, 1982) was effective ruler of the Soviet Union from 1964 to 1982, though at first in partnership with...

The intense rivalry between Taraki and Amin within the Khalq faction heated up. By September 1979, Taraki's followers had made several attempts on Amin's life. Also: 1979 by Smashing Pumpkins. ...

Taraki's death was first noted in the New Kabul Times on October 10, which reported that the former leader only recently hailed as the “great teacher ... great genius ... great leader” had died quietly “of serious illness, which he had been suffering from for some time.” is the 283rd day of the year (284th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

Less than three months later, after the Amin government had been overthrown, the newly installed followers of Babrak Karmal gave another, very different account of Taraki's death. According to this account, Amin ordered the commander of the palace guard to have Taraki executed. Taraki reportedly was suffocated with a pillow over his head.

Amin's emergence from the power struggle within the small divided communist party in Afghanistan alarmed the Soviets and would usher in the series of events which lead to the Soviet invasion.

Further reading

• David B. Edwards: Before Taliban: genealogies of the Afghan jihad. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2002, ISBN 0-520-22861-8

External links

• History of the brief period of Communist-controlled Government in Afghanistan
• Biography of President Taraki at Afghanland.com
• Telephone Conversation Between Kosygin and Taraki

v • d • e Heads of State of Afghanistan since 1919

Emirate of Afghanistan: Amanullah Khan | Inayatullah Khan | Habibullah Ghazi Kingdom of Afghanistan: Mohammed Nadir Shah | Mohammed Zahir Shah This article or section cites very few or no references or sources. ... Afghanistan has only intermittently been a republic - between 1973-1992 and from 2001 onwards - at other times being governed by a variety of kings, emirs and (under the mujahideen and Taliban regimes in the 1990s) Islamist rulers. ... is the 121st day of the year (122nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 257th day of the year (258th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1979 by Smashing Pumpkins. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Mohammad Musa Shafiq (1932 1979) was an Afghan politician. ... is the 198th day of the year (199th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the song by James Blunt, see 1973 (song). ... April 27 is the 117th day of the year (118th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 248 days remaining. ... Year 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar). ... The Prime Minister of Afghanistan is a currently a defunct post in the Afghan Government. ... is the 121st day of the year (122nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 86th day of the year (87th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1979 by Smashing Pumpkins. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... The Peoples Democratic Party of Afghanistan (in Persian: حزب دموکراتيک خلق افغانستان, in Pashto: د افغانستان د خلق دموکراټیک ګوند, PDPA) was a Soviet-aligned Revisionist party that ruled Afghanistan from 1978 to 1991 with the help of 12000 Russian troops. ... is the 1st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1965 Gregorian calendar. ... is the 257th day of the year (258th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1979 by Smashing Pumpkins. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... is the 121st day of the year (122nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 257th day of the year (258th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1979 by Smashing Pumpkins. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Image File history File links Afghanistan_flag_1919. ... King Amanullah Khan Ghazi Amir Amanullah Khan (June 1, 1892 - April 25, 1960) was the ruler of Afghanistan from 1919 to 1929. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Amir Habibullah Ghazi (name transliterated in many other ways, born Habibullah) (c. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1615x1062, 108 KB) Summary Licensing File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Iran national football team Flag of Afghanistan Luxembourg national football team Afghanistan national football team Afghanistan... Anthem SurÅ«d-i MillÄ« Capital (and largest city) Kabul Official languages Pashto, Persian (DarÄ«)1 Government Islamic Republic  -  President Hamid Karzai  -  Vice President Ahmad Zia Massoud  -  Vice President Karim Khalili Independence from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland   -  Declared August 8, 1919   -  Recognized August 19 1919  Area... Mohammed Nadir Shah (born Mohammed Nadir Khan; 1883 - November 8, 1933) was king of Afghanistan from 1929 until his assassination in 1933 (see Reigns of Nadir Shah and Zahir Shah). ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... Daoud's Republic of Afghanistan: Mohammed Daoud Khan Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1554x1044, 97 KB) This image (or all images in this article or category) was uploaded in the JPEG format. ... Daouds Republic (July 17, 1973 - April 28, 1978) welcome Mohammed Daoud Khan received on returning to power on July 17, 1973 reflected the citizenrys disappointment with the lackluster politics of the preceding decade. ... This article or section cites very few or no references or sources. ... Democratic Republic of Afghanistan: Nur Muhammad Taraki | Hafizullah Amin | Babrak Karmal | Haji Mohammad Chamkani | Mohammad Najibullah Image File history File links AfghanFlag1980. ... The Democratic Republic of Afghanistan was the communist governance in Afghanistan between 1978 and 1992. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Babrak Karmal (January 6, 1929 - December 3, 1996) was the third President of Afghanistan (1979 - 1986) during the period of the communist Democratic Republic of Afghanistan. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Dr. Mohammad Najibullah (Pashto/Persian: ‎ ; born 1947, died September 27, 1996) was the fourth and last President of the communist Democratic Republic of Afghanistan. ... Islamic Republic of Afghanistan: Sibghatullah Mojaddedi | Burhanuddin Rabbani Image File history File links Flag_of_Afghanistan_1992_free. ... Afghanistan (Pashtu/Dari-Persian: Afğānistān افغانستان) is a country in Central Asia. ... Sibghatullah Al-Mojaddedi (born 1926). ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan: Mohammed Omar Image File history File links Flag_of_Taliban. ... Flag of the Islamic Emirate Afghanistan (1997-2001). ... Mullah Mohammed Omar (Pashto: ملا محمد عمر) (born c. ... Islamic Republic of Afghanistan: Burhanuddin Rabbani | Hamid Karzai