This month marks 30 years since the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan. The Soviets moved in in late 1979 against a Communist government for being too Stalinist for Moscow's liking. Shooting the Stalinists took a matter of days. Building a pro-Moscow government able to take their place and keep it seemed to take forever.
Even so after 9 years and 3 months (and 15,000 dead) the Soviets did finally decide enough was enough and to cut their losses. Here is how it looked:
