The rebels' timing was impeccable. Najibullah, leader of the Moscow-backed regime in Afghanistan, was 15 minutes into his opening address at a National Assembly session called to adopt a new constitution giving him vast powers as President. Suddenly a rocket explosion shook the meeting hall. Three more blasts, each louder than the last, followed during the next few minutes. The beefy Najibullah, 41, known to his countrymen as "the Ox," never flinched as he outlined a policy of national reconciliation aimed at ending eight years of civil war. The rockets killed five people outside the hall, helping the rebels make a...
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