In an interview with a Turmush correspondent, Tashmatov talked about being drafted into the army in November 1983. “My fellow servicemen and I arrived in Samarkand (Uzbekistan), and after completing a six-month course, we were sent to Termez. From there, we were flown by military aircraft to Kunduz, and later we were assigned to a regiment stationed in Faizabad. Thus, 18-year-old guys, who had never faced war before, found themselves in the midst of combat operations, where we spent two years until 1986. Major military operations took place every day or every other day. We engaged in battles on orders and based on intelligence data,” he recalls.
Tashmatov noted that one event has remained in his memory for a lifetime, despite nearly 40 years having passed. “In Faizabad, we were waiting for the delivery of supplies and ammunition. When the cargo arrived by train, we organized a convoy with special vehicles. Once, while transporting food, the BMP leading the convoy hit a mine. There was a powerful explosion — the multi-ton vehicle was thrown 5–6 meters into the air. It overturned, and the fuel spilled and instantly ignited. The soldiers inside burned alive, and we could do nothing to help — the flames were too strong. I still remember how we collected the charred bodies of our comrades and covered them with tarpaulins for transport to the medical unit. Such attacks were frequent, and I cannot forget my fallen comrades,” he shares.
Today, Zhaanbay Tashmatov is 61 years old. After returning from the war, he fulfilled his childhood dream of becoming a doctor. He obtained higher education and dedicated his life to medicine in Kyrgyzstan. “I went to war at 18 and returned at 21. After that, I enrolled in a medical institute in Novosibirsk and graduated. At the beginning of my career, I worked as a doctor in a dental clinic, and then until 2001, I worked as a dentist in a children's hospital in the Jalal-Abad region. From 2001 to 2011, I served as a doctor in military unit No. 704 in Manas. I am now retired,” the veteran reported.
