Guerrilla Warfare and Languages

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Afghans storm Kabul airport after U.S. withdrawal. Online pic.

The Ukraine Soviet Union war over Donetsk and Luhansk won’t be the last one. Why? Army generals do not submit report cards on how countries like Vietnam and Afghanistan, defeated superpowers.

We don’t know much about Afghanistan. That is why it is regarded as the bad guy. What we know is that it crippled the military giants:

l Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (Russia)

l United States of America (America)

How? Land. The two superpowers had superior hardware like tanks, air power, electronics, and money to buy local spies but they did not know the land: mountains, valleys and secret water resources in Afghanistan.

It’s called guerrilla warfare. Afghans understand what might seem mundane to invading enemies: significance of the bloom of a certain flower, mountain plants and animals that are food, how locals dress at various times and why, and the hammer, languages.

Languages are the key in guerrilla warfare. Wise tourists know that there are certain no-go areas for foreigners. This brings us to surveillance, which is anchored in spies.

Invading armies have money to burn, so they hire locals to report movement and people. U.S. and Soviet Union did not speak Afghan languages so they couldn’t verify information spies delivered.

This is the main reason why the two superpowers withdrew from Afghanistan and went back home, but army generals did not report it to taxpayers. They must publicly admit why they were defeated, to avoid future mistakes and wars.

By: Nonqaba waka Msimang.

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