Newly declassified documents from the Central Archives of the Russian Ministry of Defense shed light on the contribution of soldiers from the Soviet republics to the victory in Great Patriotic War. Among them was the 17th Guards Cavalry Division from Tajikistan, which played a crucial role in the Battle of the Caucasus, the Battle of Kursk, the liberation of Ukraine, and the Berlin Offensive.
According to the documents, “Tajik military units were formed in 1941–1942 and took part in the defense of the Caucasus and the liberation of Ukraine. Tajik fighters distinguished themselves in the battles for the Dnieper and other key operations.”
The 17th Guards Cavalry Division had been established in the 1920s and was based in Central Asia. In August 1941, it was engaged in defensive battles on the southern front, fighting against advancing German and Romanian forces.
Throughout the war, the division took part in several major operations:
The Battle of the Caucasus (1942–1943)
The Battle of Kursk (1943)
The liberation of Ukraine and Belarus (1943–1944)
The Vistula-Oder Offensive (1945)
The Berlin Offensive (1945)
In the final stages of the war, the division participated in the storming of Berlin, contributing to the ultimate defeat of Nazi Germany.
The Heroism of Sergeant Akhmedov
One of the division’s heroes was Sergeant Fatulla Akhmedov, a commander of an anti-tank rifle unit in the 61st Guards Cavalry Regiment. In July 1944, during the battle for the Polish city of Luków, his unit captured an enemy bunker. Though wounded, Akhmedov refused to leave the battlefield.
On July 30, 1944, during the battle in Siedlce, he took a defensive position in the basement of a ruined building. Using his anti-tank rifle, he managed to destroy an assault gun and threw a grenade at a German Tiger tank. In that battle, he was gravely wounded. That evening, Sergeant Akhmedov—nicknamed the “Tiger Hunter” by the frontline press—succumbed to his injuries.
For his bravery and heroism, Fatulla Akhmedov was posthumously awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR.
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Based on materials from TASS