What do you think?
Rate this book
The Last Warlord: The Life and Legend of Dostum, the Afghan Warrior Who Led US Special Forces to Topple the Taliban Regime
The Last Warlord tells the story of the brotherhood forged in the mountains of Afghanistan between elite American Green Berets and Dostum that is told in the movie 12 The Declassified True Story of the Horsesoldiers
The Last Warlord tells the spellbinding story of the legendary Afghan warlord Abdul Rashid Dostum, a larger-than-life figure who guided US Special Forces to victory over the Taliban after 9/11. Having gained unprecedented access to General Dostum and his family and subcommanders, as well as local chieftains, mullahs, elders, Taliban prisoners, and women’s rights activists, scholar Brian Glyn Williams paints a fascinating portrait of this Northern Alliance Uzbek commander who has been shrouded in mystery and contradicting hearsay. In contrast to sensational media accounts that have mythologized the “bear of a man with a gruff laugh” who “some Uzbeks swear, has on occasion frightened people to death,” Williams carefully chronicles Dostum’s rise from peasant villager to Uzbek leader and skilled strategist who has fought a long and bitter war against the Taliban and Al Qaeda fanatics that have sought to repress his people. Also revealed is Dostum’s surprising history as a defender of women’s rights and religious moderation. In riveting detail The Last Warlord spotlights the crucial Afghan contribution to Operation Enduring how the CIA contacted the mysterious warrior Dostum to help US Special Forces wage a covert war in the mountains of Afghanistan, how respect and even friendship quickly grew between the Afghan and American fighting men, and how Dostum led his nomadic people charging into war the same way his ancestors had—on horseback. The result was one of the most decisive campaigns in the entire war on terror. The Last Warlord shows that, far from serving as an exotic backdrop for American heroics, it was these horse-mounted descendents of the Mongol warrior Genghis Khan that allowed the American military to overthrow the Taliban regime in a matter of weeks. .
The Last Warlord tells the spellbinding story of the legendary Afghan warlord Abdul Rashid Dostum, a larger-than-life figure who guided US Special Forces to victory over the Taliban after 9/11. Having gained unprecedented access to General Dostum and his family and subcommanders, as well as local chieftains, mullahs, elders, Taliban prisoners, and women’s rights activists, scholar Brian Glyn Williams paints a fascinating portrait of this Northern Alliance Uzbek commander who has been shrouded in mystery and contradicting hearsay. In contrast to sensational media accounts that have mythologized the “bear of a man with a gruff laugh” who “some Uzbeks swear, has on occasion frightened people to death,” Williams carefully chronicles Dostum’s rise from peasant villager to Uzbek leader and skilled strategist who has fought a long and bitter war against the Taliban and Al Qaeda fanatics that have sought to repress his people. Also revealed is Dostum’s surprising history as a defender of women’s rights and religious moderation. In riveting detail The Last Warlord spotlights the crucial Afghan contribution to Operation Enduring how the CIA contacted the mysterious warrior Dostum to help US Special Forces wage a covert war in the mountains of Afghanistan, how respect and even friendship quickly grew between the Afghan and American fighting men, and how Dostum led his nomadic people charging into war the same way his ancestors had—on horseback. The result was one of the most decisive campaigns in the entire war on terror. The Last Warlord shows that, far from serving as an exotic backdrop for American heroics, it was these horse-mounted descendents of the Mongol warrior Genghis Khan that allowed the American military to overthrow the Taliban regime in a matter of weeks. .
352 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2013
28 people are currently reading
243 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
September 26, 2013
A very interesting biography of General Dostum. Often fawning, the biographer makes no attempt to hide his personal feelings about his subject. But frankly, having read some biographies where the author cannot hide his contempt for his subject, an at time fawning biography was definitely more enjoyable to read. Despite this flaw, the author does give a good job at describing the events inside Afghanistan since the 1960s and the ethnic tensions between the different peoples that make up the Republic of Afghanistan. Of course, it would be wise to remember, that like most states in the region, Afghanistan was more the creation of Imperial map-making than any organic growth. Afghanistan was the buffer between England's Jewel in the Crown and the Russian Empire. The biography is well researched and one does have to respect Dostum's tenacity and ability to survive a very chaotic and bloody period in his country's history. The author makes his point that Dostum, once our goals were achieved, was once again cut out of the rebuilding of Afghanistan by the Pashtun leader we helped install, Hamid Karzai. Given the erratic behavior of Karzai, perhaps we backed the wrong horse? But then again, ethnicity matters in Afghanistan and the Uzbek minority is only about 10% of the population. Despite their majority status, the Pashtuns have always seemed to make a mess of ruling the country and often breakdown into internecine conflict, maybe we should have pushed harder.
June 25, 2015
A well written and engaging biography, The Last Warlord gives an interesting history of modern Afghanistan and how today's headlines are being shaped by centuries of tribal and cultural conflicts.
It was a unique perspective and accurately displayed the complexity of politics and war in the region. At times the long list of characters and locations were difficult to follow. However, the author paints a beautiful picture of a place all too many people hold negative stereotypes about. He gives an honest and fresh perspective on a controversial figure to which history should take note of. Definitely worth the read!
It was a unique perspective and accurately displayed the complexity of politics and war in the region. At times the long list of characters and locations were difficult to follow. However, the author paints a beautiful picture of a place all too many people hold negative stereotypes about. He gives an honest and fresh perspective on a controversial figure to which history should take note of. Definitely worth the read!
August 24, 2015
Amazing - I read it almost straight through in 3 days because I couldn't put it down. Williams is not only a detail-driven historian but a fabulous story-teller with an acute sense of character. The book does a great job of making complex history accessible and bringing humanity to the process. This is the book all of my friends and relatives will be getting as gifts this year.
October 11, 2013
An epic story of how the US turned to an Afghan Mongol warlord, who had a blood feud with the Taliban, for assistance after 9/11. The climatic final chapter where Dostum's horse-mounted raiders assist the CIA and Special Forces in destroying the Taliban and seizing Afghanistan's holiest shrine is just the beginning. There is more to this story than just the untold account of how the US overthrew the Taliban using indigenous horse warriors, it is a deep dive into the world of Afghan warlords and ethnic groups.
For the first time it tells how one of Afghanistan's ethnic military commanders rose from poverty to controlling northern Afghanistan and fighting against Bin Laden in the 1980s, and the Taliban in the 1990s and 2000s. It is a beautiful story of his childhood, the loss of his wife, and his vengeance against those who he blamed for her death. I found it be very fairly balanced (at one time the author tells us that people found the warlord Dostum to be "blood thirsty") but the author does ultimately come to see Dostum as perhaps the most secular warlord in this land of Taliban and jihad fanatics. He is flawed in this account but a fascinating character.
Plenty of fast paced military action balanced by a beautiful story of one man's battle to survive in this war torn country and protect his ancient people from those who ultimately became America's enemies after 9/11. I liked the story of US troops riding on horseback as avengers alongside Mongol horsemen from the Middle Ages. Amazing photographs of the campaign. It is remarkable that the author was able to travel to Dostum's inaccessible realm in the deserts of northern Afghanistan, gain access to this larger than life warlord, then come back safely and share this story with a Western audience for the first time.
For the first time it tells how one of Afghanistan's ethnic military commanders rose from poverty to controlling northern Afghanistan and fighting against Bin Laden in the 1980s, and the Taliban in the 1990s and 2000s. It is a beautiful story of his childhood, the loss of his wife, and his vengeance against those who he blamed for her death. I found it be very fairly balanced (at one time the author tells us that people found the warlord Dostum to be "blood thirsty") but the author does ultimately come to see Dostum as perhaps the most secular warlord in this land of Taliban and jihad fanatics. He is flawed in this account but a fascinating character.
Plenty of fast paced military action balanced by a beautiful story of one man's battle to survive in this war torn country and protect his ancient people from those who ultimately became America's enemies after 9/11. I liked the story of US troops riding on horseback as avengers alongside Mongol horsemen from the Middle Ages. Amazing photographs of the campaign. It is remarkable that the author was able to travel to Dostum's inaccessible realm in the deserts of northern Afghanistan, gain access to this larger than life warlord, then come back safely and share this story with a Western audience for the first time.
December 13, 2013
This book is special for a number of reasons - it's a very well written book about a very rare character. This book took guts to write due to the travel involved... and it gives us great details on a war whose specifics are hard to come by. Highly recommend it.
November 13, 2018
Enjoyed reading this book. Shows a hidden perspective (but albeit important) for the war(s) in Afghanistan. Interesting to read the dynamics between the Uzbek, Tajik, and Pashtun groups. Background history is also included. Almost 50 years of history are penned down in this excellent novel.
The last half moves at a blistering pace once the US SF combines with Dostum and his warriors. A true historical book.
Interestingly, being from India (North) some of the words like Dost(um), Dushman, Jung Salar, and others mentioned made exact sense. We use them in a similar sense.
The last half moves at a blistering pace once the US SF combines with Dostum and his warriors. A true historical book.
Interestingly, being from India (North) some of the words like Dost(um), Dushman, Jung Salar, and others mentioned made exact sense. We use them in a similar sense.
July 2, 2025
It's a good read and overall gives out a good a picture of Afghanistan, and it's ethnic fault lines. Dostum has lived an interesting life and this may be an understatement. His famous picture with countless medals, most of which he might have rightfully earned and now apparently were stolen when Taliban took his homeland again and he was forced to Turkey into exile. Who knows if he will mount another come back or like many past warlords of central Asia die in exile?
The author seems to be in love with Dostum and it shows in every page. I guess that is my only complaint with this book.
The author seems to be in love with Dostum and it shows in every page. I guess that is my only complaint with this book.
September 28, 2017
Fawning to say the least. But even then, the difficulty of the subject make this a must read for any student of Central Asia. He treats the ethnic and religious divisions with much care and is able to bring out the nuances in a region where everything is grey. Considering the dearth of books on Central Asia I woulf put it among must read for anyone who wants to widen their horizons.
August 22, 2018
While Professor Williams obviously goes out of his way to paint Dostum in a positive light, it is understandable due to his desire to cut through so much negative and questionable press Dostum has gotten to tell as true a story as possible. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants a deeper understanding of modern Afghanistan and the possible implications of the US’s activities there.
December 27, 2020
How hard they fought against terrorism and the sacrifices we had in Afghanistan specially in Mazar I Sharif, while now president Trump shamelessly calls Taliban “tough people who fight for their country” and Khalilzad who threaten us to make peace with Taliban ignoring their dark background.
August 30, 2018
Wonderful!
Very well written in great detail during before and after Tora Bora. Costume will remain one of the great historical figures of Afghanistan.
Very well written in great detail during before and after Tora Bora. Costume will remain one of the great historical figures of Afghanistan.
April 10, 2019
Good Read
Another good read about Afghanistan from this Author. I previously have read the same authors book Afghanistan Declassified. Good information with a sense of humor.
Another good read about Afghanistan from this Author. I previously have read the same authors book Afghanistan Declassified. Good information with a sense of humor.
December 23, 2024
"It's time for a new generation who don't have blood on their hands to build our nation. Perhaps it is fitting that I am my people's last warlord."
- General Abdul Rashid Dostum
1) This book tells us a story of a man by the name of Abdul Rashid Dostum, an Uzbek who was born in a poor peasant family in Afghanistan, but because of his stubborn nature and secular credentials, he reached the position as one of the most powerful men in Afghanistan, and Dostum fought against the dreaded Taliban to save his country from religious fanatics.
2) Abdul Rashid Dostum was born into a family of peasants, and his family worked as sharecroppers on the lands of the Khans of Afghanistan. From a very young age, Dostum showed his credentials as a fighter, and when the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan and to support the Communist government of Afghanistan to stop the mujahedeens from taking over the capital city, Kabul, Dostum joined the Afghan Communist army and fought alongside the Soviets to defeat the fanatic mujahedeens.
3) But when the Soviet Union was defeated by the combined forces of mujahedeens, Pakistani and Arab fanatics, the Communist government of Afghanistan fell down, and afterwards the mujahedeens took over the control of the government.
4) But after the fall of the Communist government, chaos prevailed in Afghanistan, and in particular in Pashtun-dominated southern Afghanistan, where Pashtun mujahedeens started raping men, women, and children at will, and in this scenario was born the movement of 'Taliban,' who captured and killed the Pashtun mujahedeens commanders and conquered all of southern Afghanistan.
5) At first people in Afghanistan welcomed the Taliban for bringing safety and security to the country, but later on the same Taliban showed their true intentions when they started burning schools, banned girls education, stoned women for adultery, and beat men for not growing beards and introduced other draconian Islamic laws.
6) As Afghanistan is a multiethnic state, in the north live the Uzbeks, in the northeast are Persian Tajiks, in the center are the Shiite Hazaras, and in the south live the Pashtuns, the largest ethnic community of Afghanistan. And it is the Pashtuns who dominated Afghanistan for many centuries.
7) The problem in Afghanistan is that it was born not as a treaty amongst all these various ethnicities, but it was the southern Pashtuns who conquered all the other races of Afghanistan and created the State of Afghanistan, and that's the reason because of which the Uzbeks, Tajiks, and Hazaras came together and created the "Northern Alliance" to fight against the Pashtun Taliban.
8) But it is a well-known fact that the Pashtun Taliban is in bed with the ISI of Pakistan, and because of this support, they captured 90% of Afghanistan, and only the north and northeast parts remained free from their hands at that time. But this changed suddenly after 9/11. And as the person who is responsible for 9/11, the guest of the Taliban is the notorious Osama bin Laden. And when the president of the United States told the Taliban to hand over osama and other Al-Qaeda terrorists, the taliban leader mullah omar refused and told bluntly to Americans that Osama was the last person to leave Afghanistan.
9) After the refusal by the Taliban, the Americans needed an ally who was trustworthy and also reliable, and since the Lion of Panjshir Valley, the great Tajik commander Ahmad Shah Massoud, was killed by the Al-Qaeda suicide bombers just two days before the incident of 9/11, the Americans selected the Uzbek warlord Abdul Rashid Dostum as their proxy, and later the combined forces of Uzbek warriors and American soldiers defeated the Taliban badly.
10) The author had done a good amount of research before writing this book, and he himself went to Afghanistan to meet Abdul Rashid Dostum, and he also traveled to various places that are related to Dostum in Afghanistan.
11) The language of the book is very easy to read, and the author also included the pictures of Abdul Rashid Dostum in this book.
12) I will recommend to readers that if you are interested in reading about Afghanistan, about the Afghan jihad, and also about the men who defeated the dreaded Taliban, then you can surely go for this wonderful book.
My ratings: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (5/5)
Table of contents:
------------------------------
* The warlord of Mazar
* How to meet a warlord
* The approaching storm
* Raiders
* Last line of defense
* The evil comes to America
* Search of a plan
* Khoja Doko village, 1954
* The first battles
* The soldier
* The traitor
* Khadija
* Conspiracies
* The warlord
* The coup
* Malik
* The Americans
* The offensive begins
* Interview with a warlord
I hope you like the review. Thanks for reading. Jai Hind.
- General Abdul Rashid Dostum
1) This book tells us a story of a man by the name of Abdul Rashid Dostum, an Uzbek who was born in a poor peasant family in Afghanistan, but because of his stubborn nature and secular credentials, he reached the position as one of the most powerful men in Afghanistan, and Dostum fought against the dreaded Taliban to save his country from religious fanatics.
2) Abdul Rashid Dostum was born into a family of peasants, and his family worked as sharecroppers on the lands of the Khans of Afghanistan. From a very young age, Dostum showed his credentials as a fighter, and when the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan and to support the Communist government of Afghanistan to stop the mujahedeens from taking over the capital city, Kabul, Dostum joined the Afghan Communist army and fought alongside the Soviets to defeat the fanatic mujahedeens.
3) But when the Soviet Union was defeated by the combined forces of mujahedeens, Pakistani and Arab fanatics, the Communist government of Afghanistan fell down, and afterwards the mujahedeens took over the control of the government.
4) But after the fall of the Communist government, chaos prevailed in Afghanistan, and in particular in Pashtun-dominated southern Afghanistan, where Pashtun mujahedeens started raping men, women, and children at will, and in this scenario was born the movement of 'Taliban,' who captured and killed the Pashtun mujahedeens commanders and conquered all of southern Afghanistan.
5) At first people in Afghanistan welcomed the Taliban for bringing safety and security to the country, but later on the same Taliban showed their true intentions when they started burning schools, banned girls education, stoned women for adultery, and beat men for not growing beards and introduced other draconian Islamic laws.
6) As Afghanistan is a multiethnic state, in the north live the Uzbeks, in the northeast are Persian Tajiks, in the center are the Shiite Hazaras, and in the south live the Pashtuns, the largest ethnic community of Afghanistan. And it is the Pashtuns who dominated Afghanistan for many centuries.
7) The problem in Afghanistan is that it was born not as a treaty amongst all these various ethnicities, but it was the southern Pashtuns who conquered all the other races of Afghanistan and created the State of Afghanistan, and that's the reason because of which the Uzbeks, Tajiks, and Hazaras came together and created the "Northern Alliance" to fight against the Pashtun Taliban.
8) But it is a well-known fact that the Pashtun Taliban is in bed with the ISI of Pakistan, and because of this support, they captured 90% of Afghanistan, and only the north and northeast parts remained free from their hands at that time. But this changed suddenly after 9/11. And as the person who is responsible for 9/11, the guest of the Taliban is the notorious Osama bin Laden. And when the president of the United States told the Taliban to hand over osama and other Al-Qaeda terrorists, the taliban leader mullah omar refused and told bluntly to Americans that Osama was the last person to leave Afghanistan.
9) After the refusal by the Taliban, the Americans needed an ally who was trustworthy and also reliable, and since the Lion of Panjshir Valley, the great Tajik commander Ahmad Shah Massoud, was killed by the Al-Qaeda suicide bombers just two days before the incident of 9/11, the Americans selected the Uzbek warlord Abdul Rashid Dostum as their proxy, and later the combined forces of Uzbek warriors and American soldiers defeated the Taliban badly.
10) The author had done a good amount of research before writing this book, and he himself went to Afghanistan to meet Abdul Rashid Dostum, and he also traveled to various places that are related to Dostum in Afghanistan.
11) The language of the book is very easy to read, and the author also included the pictures of Abdul Rashid Dostum in this book.
12) I will recommend to readers that if you are interested in reading about Afghanistan, about the Afghan jihad, and also about the men who defeated the dreaded Taliban, then you can surely go for this wonderful book.
My ratings: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (5/5)
Table of contents:
------------------------------
* The warlord of Mazar
* How to meet a warlord
* The approaching storm
* Raiders
* Last line of defense
* The evil comes to America
* Search of a plan
* Khoja Doko village, 1954
* The first battles
* The soldier
* The traitor
* Khadija
* Conspiracies
* The warlord
* The coup
* Malik
* The Americans
* The offensive begins
* Interview with a warlord
I hope you like the review. Thanks for reading. Jai Hind.
September 13, 2017
If you have ever wondered what the Afghans that helped U.S. Special Forces in the beginning of Operation Enduring Freedom are like, what motivated them to team up with Americans, then this book is for you. It may surprise you that there are men like Abdul Rashid Dostum that build monuments to fallen U.S. service men. An promote western ideas and values even amongst the ever changing landscape that is Afghanistan. I thought this book may be a dull read but I was wrong. It was far better than I could have imagined. The story of this great warriors life is made for a movie. I hope I inspire you to read this book, if you know anything about our longest war I'd bet you do not know this. It's a story that needs to be passed on.
March 28, 2016
The book is about general Dostum, larger than life figure of the last 35 years of turbulent history of Afghanistan. He was fighting for "communist" government of Afghanistan, together with Soviets against the mujaheddin, with mujaheddin against the government, with some factions of mujaheddin against other factions of mujaheddin. His life was and continue to be a true rollercoaster: from nobody to the most powerful man in Afghanistan, then to betrayal, defeat and exile, spectacular comeback, defeat and exile and come back again. And what a comeback: together with few American special forces on the ground and American air might, he was responsible for the total collapse of Taliban, undisputed masters of Afghanistan just a few short weeks before that.
The book made me believe even more than before, that Soviet invasion of Afghanistan cannot be judged by simple "evil against good" formula. The standard of living of Uzbek, Turkmen, and Tajik minorities in the Soviet Union, although terrible by American standards, were still light years ahead in comparison to the life of the same ethnic minorities in Afghanistan: the woman's rights, access to medical help and education, just to name the few. In no way, however, that understanding diminishes my deepest respect for Ronald Reagan, who used Afghanistan to defeat the "evil empire".
The book is a page turner, and once I started, I could not stop until I finished the last page. The only negative thing about the book is that the author, who did meet General Dostum on multiple occasions, and clearly is fond of him, paints him almost as a knight in shining armor, something like the modern incarnation of great Saladin. I doubt that such people exist anywhere in the world, but especially in Afghanistan.
The book made me believe even more than before, that Soviet invasion of Afghanistan cannot be judged by simple "evil against good" formula. The standard of living of Uzbek, Turkmen, and Tajik minorities in the Soviet Union, although terrible by American standards, were still light years ahead in comparison to the life of the same ethnic minorities in Afghanistan: the woman's rights, access to medical help and education, just to name the few. In no way, however, that understanding diminishes my deepest respect for Ronald Reagan, who used Afghanistan to defeat the "evil empire".
The book is a page turner, and once I started, I could not stop until I finished the last page. The only negative thing about the book is that the author, who did meet General Dostum on multiple occasions, and clearly is fond of him, paints him almost as a knight in shining armor, something like the modern incarnation of great Saladin. I doubt that such people exist anywhere in the world, but especially in Afghanistan.
April 6, 2016
Fascinating look at a little known participant in the 2001 war against the Taliban in Afghanistan by a combined US-Uzebek/Afghan force. The author clearly did his research both in his travels to Afghanistan to visit with Dostum and in talking with the American Special Forces participants.
The view Williams lays out for us here is heavily influenced by his time with Dostum. That said it is still a great read and probably gets you closer to the truth (always somewhere in the middle they say) than any accounts of the Afghan Warlord in the mainstream press.
The view Williams lays out for us here is heavily influenced by his time with Dostum. That said it is still a great read and probably gets you closer to the truth (always somewhere in the middle they say) than any accounts of the Afghan Warlord in the mainstream press.
October 5, 2019
An incredibly positive portrait of Dostum and the fighting history of the Northern Alliance, but equally a rare insight into Dostum as a man and a clear representation of the ethnic layers of allegiance and complication in years of conflict in Afghanistan
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews