People’s Democratic Party of Afghanistan

The People’s Democratic Party of Afghanistan was an Afghan communist party founded in 1965 that ruled Afghanistan from 1978 to 1992.

Saur Revolution: The April 1978 coup in Afghanistan that brought the People’s Democratic Party of Afghanistan to power. The party seized power in this coup, beginning its rule and provoking armed resistance.
Kabul University: Afghanistan’s principal public university, established in Kabul in 1932. University circles supplied many early party activists and helped form its political networks.
Soviet–Afghan War: The 1979–1989 conflict between Soviet forces and the Afghan government on one side and insurgent groups on the other. The Soviet intervention aimed to preserve the party’s government and intensified resistance to it.
Islamism: A range of political movements that seek to organize government and society according to interpretations of Islam. Islamist movements became the party’s most consequential ideological opponents and insurgent adversaries.
Khalq: A radical faction of the People’s Democratic Party of Afghanistan led by Nur Muhammad Taraki and Hafizullah Amin. Khalq dominated the party’s first years in power and drove its rapid reforms.
Nur Muhammad Taraki: An Afghan writer and politician who co-founded the People’s Democratic Party of Afghanistan and led its Khalq faction. Taraki helped establish the party and became its first head of state after the Saur Revolution.
Afghan civil war (1989–1992): The conflict between Afghanistan’s communist government and armed opposition groups after Soviet forces withdrew. The party remained in power after Soviet withdrawal but fell as military and political alliances fractured.
Mujahideen: Muslim fighters who wage jihad; the term commonly names Afghan resistance forces opposing Soviet occupation and the communist government. These armed groups challenged the party’s government and later fought among themselves for state power.
Parcham: A faction of the People’s Democratic Party of Afghanistan associated with Babrak Karmal and a more gradual political approach. Parcham’s rivalry with Khalq repeatedly reshaped the party’s leadership and policies.
Babrak Karmal: An Afghan politician who led the Parcham faction and headed the government from 1979 to 1986. Karmal organized the party’s rival faction and returned to power with Soviet backing.

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