About the title
1988, on the eve of the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan. The command of the 108th Motor Rifle Division plans a retreat through the Salang Pass, controlled by the mujahideen group of Engineer Hoshem. Intelligence tries to negotiate a truce with the mujahideen, but matters are complicated when a Soviet military pilot is captured by Hoshem. A complex game begins, intertwining the conflicting interests of a great many different people: staff officers, Islamists, special forces, intelligence agents, officials of the Afghan government, Soviet intelligence officers, Tajiks, and Pashtuns.