War had been practicing by warriors, countries, nations or civilian groups since the human beings start battling thousands year ago in order to expand their empires though war and attacks using different weapons and techniques in the world.
There are many solutions and techniques exist in different tasks or programs in order to reach to its final goal with less risk and more benefits. For example; in marketing techniques, methods of study, ways how to attract customers, how to find loyal and target customers, war also has many techniques as well for example; pro-activeness in war, planning, warriors qualifications, weapons, war zones study, attacks, commanding, procurement, post review of war, ambushing, day raids and finally Night Raids.
As said above thousands years ago, the war has been practicing using different above techniques academically or traditionally. Night raids has also been applied by Afghan warriors during past centuries by the name of “Shabikhoon” which derived from two Dari language words as “Shab” means “Night” and “Khoon” means “Blood”. Shabikhoon has also been practicing by warriors with good result and that is why it is famous in Afghanistan and all the people are familiar with this name.
Shabikhoon or Night raids is raids that occurs during the hours of darkness. It is distinguished from daytime combat by lower visibility and its reversed relation to the circadian cycle. Typically raids or combat at night is favorable to the attacker, with offensive tactics being focused on exploiting the advantages to maximum effect.Defensive night tactics mainly focus on negating the advantages given by the night to the attacker.
During Russian Forces invasion to Afghanistan Shabikhoon or Night Raids also was applied by both parties of Russian Soldiers and Mujahiddin forces (who used to fight against Russian Force).
Once I was eye witness of one of the Night Raids which performed by Russian forces in our village in 1980 at midnight when I was a 10 years old child. We had a hunting gun and both my father and mother were doing patrol during the night one by one until morning and it was a tremendous time for me one that time.
Once a night I asked my parent and still I remember the dialog between me and my parent as furnished as below:
Me: Why are you not going to sleep and doing patrol every night?
My parent: We are going to defend from our house and children.
Me: How do you defend us?
My parent: We are doing patrol and not to sleep while Russian Soldiers are entering our house and whenever they enter then we have to shoot them.
Me: How can you fight with them whereas you have hunting gun and they are fully equipped with modern weapons?
My parent: According to Islam we must defend from our house, country, family while being attack by others by force and we are going to do this job proudly instead of being killed, captured, injured or even raped shamefully.
As a 10 years old child I still remember that dialog between me and my parent in that
Rainy night. Finally Russian Soldiers operated their Night Raids in one of the targeted house in our neighborhoods and they killed one of the Mujahidin who came to visit their family during the night as it was reported previously by Russian spy before and addionally 15 civilians including 10 innocent children, 2 old men and 3 women also were killed during that Night Raids. And Russian soldiers just killed 15 civilians because of only one Mujahid who was their main target to be killed.
According to different media report, from the last decade, Night Raids were practiced by NATO forces in different areas of Afghanistan and these kinds of Night Raid are still remind me that past stories which I was witnessed in 1980. It means that Night Raids are fully against the civilians lives. Most of the Night Raids are not aired by Media, because the journalists are not able to go to house during midnight parallel to the soldiers who have mission. However it was continuously condemned strongly by Afghan President Hamid Karzai asking NATO to stop Night Raids practice and still this gap is controversially on debate and not finalized yet.
NATO countries’ poor taxpayers are not aware that they are working hard and paying tax to their government and their money finally take a lot of civilians’ lives daily by the name of Night Raids.
Written by: Sadaqatullah Sadiq, March, 20, 2013, Kabul Afghanistan
