Kazbek Akhtimirovich Hudalov (Казбек Ахтемирович Худалов), an Ossetian born in 1959,[1] was a Soviet soldier who was initially reported to have been captured during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, but was later revealed to have been a "notorious traitor" and one of the highest ranked Soviets who defected to fight with the Mujahideen repelling the occupation.[2] [3]
A native of Vladikavkaz in North Ossetia–Alania,[4] Hudalov graduated from the Ordzhenikidze Command School,[5] and the military academy in Almaty.[6]
He joined the Soviet Army on 1 September 1977 and was deployed to Afghanistan in August 1983.[7]
He was a lieutenant in the Soviet Army[6] and was listed as "captured" by Mujahideen in Parwan on 16 September 1984[1] after he went to search for a subordinate and never returned.[8] However, by early 1985 it was clear that he had defected and was fighting with the insurgents.[2]
Hudalov defected from the Soviet army to join the Mujahideen and surrounded himself with a group of approximately a dozen similar deserters of largely Tajik descent.[5] The group focused its attacks on the 40th Army and Democratic Republic of Afghanistan outposts, frequently dressing in Soviet military uniforms to approach targets.[5]
In autumn 1988, Hudalov was believed to be operating around Bagram, but as the group moved towards the Panjshir mountains, it ceased to visibly operate.[5]