have two home nations. russia is my first home the real one but i see afghanistan as home now as well what. you were only eighteen when you were center afghanistan did you realize where you were going and what you would face once you're there still. i knew nothing until they sent us to a boot camp in turkmenistan after six months in the boot camp they told us we were going to afghanistan. when you were told that you were headed there did you have any idea what it would be like if they told us there was war were realize that afghanistan was another country but we had no idea what real war was like of course we were curious to see it with our own eyes but when we got there it was like we're on a different planet with all the mountains and gunfire around us and first we were intimidated but still we were curious to experience war firsthand because prior to that everything when you about war came from books like little boys that i did not see

any action i was on guard duty had bugs air base and then of course this is you were at this base yes that's right for how long about six months but if you were at the base the whole time how did you get captured we went on leave we headed to a nearby village to get some fruit without permission on our own would already have been there a couple of times before it was fine but on the fourth time we were caught in an ambush we were walking along the street and a few afghan boys ran up to us saying sure i'll be sure i'll be which means soviets we asked them where the local store was where we could buy something and they said it's over there we can take you there and then as we were walking at some point they disappeared did they lie to you and i mean why did you trust them we never imagined little kids could trick us into an ambush that i would trust of them and it up captured how did it happen there were three of you yes that's right and how

many people did they have they had many people there were two groups in the area immediately one of my friends was wounded in both legs another one was wanted and i was wanted as well and they surrounded us with their assault rifles and they kept shooting over our has to keep us down and they started yelling at us. telling us to get up and walk i could walk and my friend could walk but the other one the one who was wounded in the legs could not walk and they killed him so there was nothing we could do so they'd they just tracked your way to an unknown direction they took us to a village there were two groups there so they divided us one took me and the other took my friend so you were left all alone among afghan which i had seen and they too cute to their camp and what happened next what was it like what does a camp look like i was terrified the fear was alive felt they all had beards turbines on their heads armed with rifles yelling at me in their language the first

things they showed me in the village were the bodies of soldiers and officers they had executed just lying there in the square i couldn't understand what they were seeing but i knew from the gestures that they were telling me that the same thing would happen to me so yes that is the end of your life and yes i thought i was going to die but then they started moving me from village to village at night and i started thinking that perhaps they won't kill me behalves they would ask for ransom . and where do they keep you. initially when they captured me in parwan province they kept me in a shed i. am sometimes they would put me in a pit and then they took me to punch air and then. they took me to a village called. that's where i met their leader masoud. they brought me to him and i was standing there exhausted bleeding with dirty and bloody bandages my

teeth broken. they took me into a yard there were a lot of people sitting there a lot of people with special one of the mujahideen who used to be an engineer spoke a little russian he told me say hello to these people and i don't know why but i saw one person who looked different from others or there were about thirty to thirty five people there i don't know why i don't know how to explain this but he looked different so i walked straight to this man to greet him first. apostle. and this was a how much of a message at that point i didn't know it was him. i thought i just thought i should say hello to their leader first and then two others when i approached him they grabbed me and pulled me back the guy who spoke russian asked me why did you go to him first so i said he seems to be the most important person here i just thought

i'd greeting first and that's when masood left and told them to let me go they let me go and i said hello to him and then i went around the yard and greeted everybody . and how were you treated did you eat decently or where you've beaten and starved to death did they treat you like a slave. i don't know why but the beating stopped after that incident they let me get washed up gave me some clothes banners my wounds fed me and took me to a house where i lived it was only later that i figured out that this was the house of my suit himself and all those people thirty to thirty five of them were all muscles guests. what did they tell you that you were going to die but they didn't tell me anything. and as days passed i started hoping i would survive. your life after you met my suit changed right. well it didn't happen

overnight but i was captured during the first bunch air offensive and it was followed by the second offensive when soviet troops and pro-government forces attempted to bring the puncher valley on the control. of the plane and then called his field commanders from all the provinces and told them to bring their prisoners to upon share. there were six of them and i was number seven. i was relieved to see some fellow russians but it was good not to be alone because we didn't know what was going to happen next told the prisoners via translator the war is about to start i decided to set you free you can go wherever you like to the u.s. iran pakistan switzerland or. yeah everyone was happy. so he just wanted to say you know free. they sent everyone

to pakistan first and then to other countries. but also all of us prisoners got together there were russians turkmen and whose backs. but we didn't trust each other as we never revealed our real background or one guy told me his name was son and that he was from ukraine but that wasn't true and when you know i am originally from the cross and our region but i told them i was from ukraine in my name was straw of. them. and we didn't trust each other so all the guys said they were ready to go to pakistan. and some wanted to go to switzerland and france. only me and another guy stayed with me and i thought you know why did you stay like being a prisoner in afghanistan. in those days. soviet prisoners of war

fear they would be treated as traitors if they came back home so i was afraid anyway i still had hope that one day i would return that's why i didn't want to go to any foreign country that i knew i was soviet troops were still fighting in afghanistan. i'm a software message and the other was heading surprised by your decision but yes it was when the second punch air offensive was launched and must suit told the local population in the puncher valley to move to the north of ghana stan. he followed them and i went to the living he had five bodyguards they were old afghan men and i was his sixth bodyguard. by the time he told you be my bodyguard he offered the job . no as we were approaching the mountain pass he gave me a gun. so was it

a show of confidence in you. probably so he gave me a gun and told me i would go with him. up with that was quite a long and steep pass. but i was the first to climb it and so i said down on a rock and waited for them to catch up on what they were going really slowly they go about twenty steps and then rest for a while and then continued and suddenly an idea flashed in my mind i decided to check the ammo. i think the magazine in the rifle and additional magazines were full with a massive one hundred and twenty contra just about. and the gun was in good condition. and then i saw the flares of signal guns which meant soviet troops or pro-government forces were near you but if you think of us think about anything

it's going to quit and then i thought maybe i should. you know well. well i thought. that maybe i should kill them including masood and run away but then i thought he had put his trust in me and as they caught up with me he said down on the rock to carve a flask a cord a cup of tea for everyone and he kept looking at me smiling as critical to how many years as you work with him. turn or maybe eleven. ten eleven and you eventually became friends straight yes. for you ready to sacrifice your life for him like right away surely that's part of the job of a bodyguard now. that was later when i got used to working for him like you were ready to die for him yes i was

a bodyguard my job was to protect his life he paid you for that. money yes although the pay was very small. i didn't have a family so i didn't need much. i shared the money with the other bodyguards the afghans to cajole them because i was afraid they would bury me or speak badly about me behind my back which is what you left and which is yes i was a bodyguard and a muslim supports but i was still russian and into them. she was all about you becoming a boss that after a short break we'll be back with more of the fascinating story of a soviet soldier turned with the head dean commander bodyguard in afghanistan don't go away.

with. technology innovation. developments around. the future covered. in fish farms waters they have the pond to me because. i size spread all over and over is the most toxic food you have in the whole will cause a drama zone on the tissue inquiry furthermore tells restrictions. that . really knows what's inside the fish.

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war without end with no pre-determined exit strategy is this most recent invasion of gaza could last for months the humana. tarion catastrophe for the palestinians is incalculable hence israel's security is unclear. pleasure to have you with us here on our t.v. today i roll researcher.

and we're back with nick i was thrown off a soviet soldier captured by afghans who have that served as a bodyguard for one of the country's most powerful commanders. i know i you said you converted to islam now did they force you to do it or was it your own decision . the mujahedeen suggested that i should become a muslim i want to say they never forced anyone when i said it was my decision probably but by putting me across well how did it happen. you know as i had remained with masood they told me since you don't want to leave you'd better become

a muslim or you know you can then get married someday so i became a muslim and several years later after the soviets had left on the pro russian government of president and had been deposed we settled in kabul. with. the children. you don't want to go anywhere. neither home or abroad are. you such a strange man you need to get married and you had become a muslim by then yes. did you believe in god before taking prisoners i was baptized but was it difficult to convert to a different faith no even today i'm a muslim and a christian so you go to pray in church but also in a mosque yes wow you're really one of a kind well after all there's only one god. all right but how did you get married did they find you wife. yes the afghans found me abroad

took me to her house and we met and i like her. did you see her face before hand. yes well at first she wore a burka. but then put on a good job you sure saw that i was russian and asked whether she would marry me she said he's a muslim and he's one of us i agree and so we got married. came and read the prayers. we had a sort of a wedding in there were even some guests so you fell in love with her yes and right now you have three children together right so. simply for your return to russia. that you did you have any contact with the taliban. well getting to some of the friends i had at the time later joined the taliban. why why did they join. the way well what you muscled fought against the taliban when he

was in kabul when masood died and the foreign troops the americans invaded afghanistan most of the afghans who were loyal to masood joined to the taliban so they. joined the taliban they went on their side why the night there was you know i spent many years in afghanistan. let me explain the people of ghana always say what if someone comes to conquer us we will never leave peacefully we will always fight against occupation. if you come to help us rebuild afghanistan you're welcome with but no weapons please. but the soviet troops came to afghanistan with weapons right. yes and the afghans for to get the soviet union but you regularly visit afghanistan and you probably know the attitudes of

the afghans to this so it troops and to the americans troops is there a difference or are they perceived as occupation forces well there is a big difference in true both armies were occupiers but i must say the afghans really hate the americans they would tell me that the soviet union invested in afghanistan and help to build schools factories roads and bridges with that's what the people of afghanistan i met told me they said the russians help to improve life in afghanistan they now say that the americans keep the situation under control but it's only getting worse. just to do that but why in your opinion i mean the americans have been in afghanistan for twelve years trying to bring some order. have they managed to do that which was i mean i think the afghans are invincible they're too independent minded they love freedom they don't want to see foreigners in their country and will fight

a guerrilla war till the end. how can the taliban fighters who waged war on don't get so to speak put up such strong resistance against nato when this cutting edge military technology still can't wipe out the taliban how is that possible how do you slain that you know the afghans are very strong of guerrilla warfare they do these hidden run strikes which are always accurate but they get a lot of intelligence from ordinary people they know the territory much better and because of all this they are always one step ahead of the americans kill a lot of fighters but their numbers are only increasing i mean the number of taliban is growing why is to local population that bolsters their ranks. and i said yes most of the locals say they don't want armed foreigners in their country. and they will fight to the end. they're ready to do it we went.

over to they helped taliban because of fear maybe they're afraid no. one i don't know. if there's one more thing i think some countries are feeding them cash and arms to prolong this fight. oh. who are they what do you think i mean here you must know because you're still in contact with those people where does the taliban get the funds for weapons quick man technology to resist nato which i thought it must be some muslim countries you mean from outside from outside and muslims always help each other he also suggested before the into that it could be americans who sell them the weapons. the taliban now has a big arsenal of american weapons where do they get them i think some of that mean deed come from the americans q what kind of technology do they have why do they really have cutting edge technology or is

a oh out dated what do they use. i mean well outdated but they're still fighting well when our troops were in afghanistan the whole convoys were attacked by mujahideen today we have the taliban who attack the americans but. all the same. you save the afghans one all foreigners to leave their country but aren't there foreigners among the taliban as well yes they've got mercenaries they're everywhere they fight for money what do ordinary afghans think of these mercenaries do they support them just like the taliban they are from muslim countries they've come to help their brothers as they say. but. you know what but i think no one cares that they are paid to fight so this is how men have the backing of the majority of afghans or are

there only limited areas like border regions where they enjoy the support it is true so the majority the majority of the nation supports the taliban but you know. afghanistan is such an unpredictable country who knows. what's up not see what part of the territory does to taliban control today. the taliban fighters operate in all the provinces so there's time but an all pro insists yes and it's still a very strong force still. the west says the united states has been in afghanistan for twelve years trying to dismantle and destroy the taliban and now they're going to withdraw only to see the taliban return to power it doesn't appear that the us has wasted their effort that we know. just like the soviet union

withdrew from of ghana stan back to the us has attempted to control the situation but despite that the number of taliban fighters has been increasing until the americans leave the afghans say the taliban will continue fighting that's what they say they say about the soviet soldiers while. many say that it's better to have a close neighbor than a faraway friend if it means they regarded us as their neighbors. they say that russians help them invested in afghanistan now they say their countries heading towards disaster. they know this soviet war in afghanistan officially ended twenty five years ago did it end for you at that point. no. today together with the special committee where still searching for prisoners and remains of former soviet soldiers. i regularly travel

to afghanistan to carry out searches there. and we've been able to return about thirty soldiers both alive and dead so you mean soviet prisoners of war yes yes. some of them died there and some were captured there are many more people left their job is to bring them home the war is not over while our soldiers are still on afghan soil i would use that that was well do you have a feeling that the so its soldiers were better able to understand the afghans and the americans today. i think. yes you know i met with some former fighters. and as they say the soviet troops ford better than the americans over oh they were young

so they were better of fighting which i had yes. so brightly as. they say the soviets sent in troops first while the americans bomb everything first . and this is well above the ground troops yes were sent in troops first said mean that they had more respect for the soviets they see a real soldier should be like that. all right well thank you very much nico iowa for sharing this amazing story of your life with us today i wish only best i wish you happiness son could health thanks again. for talking to me guy was a former soviet soldier turned afghan would. he give us an amazing insight of what it's like to be a war captive in afghanistan and also shared out some of these thoughts of what could happen after the american troops leave the country and that's it for this edition of sophie and co and stay tuned for next time.

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more. now let's break the set. resistance leaders in east ukraine say they're waiting for international experts to leave kiev and examine the bodies of the victims of the malaysian airliner crash. c.e. observers already at the scene say local authorities are providing full access. president putin says the tragedy should not be politicized he's calling on all groups involved in the ukrainian conflict not to obstruct the investigation and to ensure the safety of all involved in the program. continues despite both sides suffering the bloodiest days.