Soviet backed coup in Afghanistan. As invading Soviet troops pour into Afghanistan, Afghan President Hafizullah Amin is murdered and Afghan Babrak Karmal, a KGB backed contender, was installed in his place. Despite early gains, the Soviet army met with unanticipated resistance from Muslim guerrillas, who launched a war against the foreigners. Armed by the United States, Britain, China and several Muslim nations, the Mujahideen, or holy warriors, inflicted heavy casualties on the Russians. In April 1988, after years of stalemate, Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev signed a peace accord with Afghanistan. The last Soviet soldier left Afghanistan in 1989, where civil war continued until the Taleban's seizure of power in the late 1990s. __
