Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

Sayed Muhammad Gulabzoi (born 1951) is an

Afghan Afghan may refer to: *Something of or related to Afghanistan, a country in Southern-Central Asia *Afghans, people or citizens of Afghanistan, typically of any ethnicity ** Afghan (ethnonym), the historic term applied strictly to people of the Pas ...

politician. An ethnic

Pashtun Pashtuns (, , ; ps, پښتانه, ), also known as Pakhtuns or Pathans, are an Iranian ethnic group who are native to the geographic region of Pashtunistan in the present-day countries of Afghanistan and Pakistan. They were historically re ...

from the

Zadran tribe The Zadran ( ps, ځدراڼ ''dzadrāṇ''; pronounced ''dzādroṇ'' in the Khost-Paktia dialect), also spelled Dzadran or Jadran, is a Pashtun tribe that inhabits the Loya Paktia region in southeastern Afghanistan (Khost, Paktia, and Paktika pro ...

, Gulabzoi was born in Paktia Province. An

Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an a ...

mechanic by training, he studied at the Air Force college. As an air force officer, he supported

Daoud Khan Mohammed Daoud Khan ( ps, ), also romanized as Daud Khan or Dawood Khan (18 July 1909 – 28 April 1978), was an Afghan politician and general who served as prime minister of Afghanistan from 1953 to 1963 and, as leader of the 1973 Afghan coup d ...

's 1973

coup d'état A coup d'état (; French for 'stroke of state'), also known as a coup or overthrow, is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, politician, cult, rebel group, m ...

which overthrew King Zahir Shah, for which he was rewarded with the position of Aide to the Air Force Commander. In 1976, he went to the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

to study radar technology. He was recruited into the

Khalq Khalq ( ps, خلق, ) was a faction of the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA). Its historical ''de facto'' leaders were Nur Muhammad Taraki (1967–1979), Hafizullah Amin (1979) and Sayed Mohammad Gulabzoy (1979–1990). It was also ...

faction of the communist

People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan The People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA), ''Hezb-e dimūkrātĩk-e khalq-e Afghānistān'' was a Marxist–Leninist political party in Afghanistan established on 1 January 1965. Four members of the party won seats in the 1965 Afgha ...

Hafizullah Amin Hafizullah Amin (Pashto/ prs, حفيظ الله امين; 1 August 192927 December 1979) was an Afghan communist revolutionary, politician and teacher. He organized the Saur Revolution of 1978 and co-founded the Democratic Republic of Afghanist ...

. He held only a minor role in the

Saur Revolution The Saur Revolution or Sowr Revolution ( ps, د ثور انقلاب; prs, إنقلاب ثور), also known as the April Revolution or the April Coup, was staged on 27–28 April 1978 (, ) by the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA) ...

of 1978, which brought the PDPA to power. Following the coup, he was appointed aide to President

Nur Muhammad Taraki Nur Muhammad Taraki (; 14 July 1917 – 9 October 1979) was an Afghan revolutionary communist politician, journalist and writer. He was a founding member of the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA) who served as its General Secret ...

, and later Minister of Communications. As internal struggles grew within the communist regime, he distanced himself from Amin, and joined a group of officers(the "gang of four") plotting against Amin, which also included

Aslam Watanjar Mohammad Aslam Watanjar ( ps, محمداسلم وطنجار, 1946 – November 2000) was an Afghan general and politician. He played a significant role in the coup in 1978 that killed the Afghan president Mohammad Daud Khan and started the " Saur R ...

and Assadullah Sarwari. When their coup failed, the conspirators took refuge in the Soviet embassy on September 14, 1979. In December 1979, Gulabzoi and his allies assisted the

Soviet invasion of Afghanistan The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

by serving as guides to the invading Soviet troops. During the invasion, Soviet forces killed Amin and installed

Parcham Parcham (Pashto and prs, پرچم, ) was the name of one of the factions of the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan, formed in 1967 following its split and led for most of its history by Babrak Karmal and Mohammed Najibullah. The basic id ...

leader Babrak Karmal in power. Karmal was forced to come to terms with the rival Khalq faction, as many key posts in the military were still occupied by Khalqis. As a conciliatory measure, Gulabzoi, a prominent Khalqi, was appointed Minister of Interior. As such he was placed in command of the Sarandoy ("Defenders of the Revolution"), a heavily armed paramilitary

gendarmerie Wrong info! --> A gendarmerie () is a military force with law enforcement duties among the civilian population. The term ''gendarme'' () is derived from the medieval French expression ', which translates to " men-at-arms" (literally, ...

force. After Amin's death, Gulabzoy was the self-styled leader of Khalq. In November 1988, amid renewed tensions between Khalq and Parcham, he was removed from his post and sent to

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

as ambassador by Parchami president Mohammad Najibullah. He concurrently served as DRA ambassador to Romania and Finland. He was rumoured to have proposed himself to the Soviets as a potential replacement for Najibullah. In March 1990, following an unsuccessful coup attempt by General Shahnawaz Tanai, Gulabzoi was expelled from the party, along with other Khalqis. From 1990 to 1992 he lived in

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...

, before relocating to Moscow. In 2005 he was elected to represent Khost Province in Afghanistan's

Wolesi Jirga The House of Representatives of the People, or Da Afghanistan Wolesi Jirga ( ps, دَ افغانستان ولسي جرګه), was the lower house of the bicameral National Assembly of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, alongside the upper Hous ...

, the lower house of its National Legislature. He holds

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

s in Law and Military Science, and sat on the Internal Security Committee.

Alleged KGB Connection

According to the Mitrokhnin archives, Gulabzoi was a KGB agent code-named 'Momand'.

References

1951 births Living people Ambassadors of Afghanistan to the Soviet Union Communist government ministers of Afghanistan Members of the House of the People (Afghanistan) Politicians of Khost Province {{afghanistan-politician-stub