Ahson Wardak

“While Hizb made inroads in Nangarhar, it also exploited the rising discontent sweeping through rural areas close to Kabul. Since late 1978 ethnic Hazaras in the rugged central region around Bamiyan had been rising up against the government. The regime responded by forming a Pashtun militia in neighbouring Wardak province to deploy against the rebels. On 4 June 1979—as the communist sergeant was being executed in Nangahrar—a delegation of Pashtuns drove to the district centre of Chak to collect the government-issue weapons they were meant to use against the Hazaras. With thousands of brand new rifles in their possession, the Pashtuns then turned on the government. The double cross had been hatched by a local council of scholars, elders, farmers and labourers who did not claim fealty to any mujahideen party. Later that summer, Hizb made the most of the rebellion, sending one of its commanders to establish a unit of fighters inside Chak. The commander had been living in Peshawar but was from Chak and had known Hekmatyar for nearly a decade. Using the friendships he already enjoyed within the community and the help of former Muslim Youth members, he ensured that Hizb quickly picked up support in and around the district”
― Chris Sands, Night Letters: Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and the Afghan Islamists Who Changed the World

“THE MASTER SAYS: When we sense that the time has come to change, we begin—unconsciously—to rerun a tape showing all our failures up until then. And of course, as we grow older, our quota of difficult moments increases too. However, at the same time, experience has given us the means to overcome those defeats and find a path that will allow us to carry on. We need to include that on our mental video as well. If we only watch the video of our failures, we will become paralyzed and unable to act. If we only watch the video of our successes, we will end up thinking we are much wiser than we really are. We need both videos.”
― Paulo Coelho, Maktub: From the Bestselling Author of The Alchemist