Koshiro Tanaka
is a Japanese martial artist and veteran of the Soviet-Afghan war. Tanaka wanted to leave his dull job and see if he would ever fear death. He travelled to the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan and joined Jamiat-e Islami, taking up arms against the Soviet and Afghan armies. Early life Koshiro Tanaka was born in 1940 in Tagawa (Fukuoka Prefecture). He studied karate from childhood, and then judo and kendo. Growing up, Tanaka became a businessman, but gradually came to the idea that the business of his life was martial arts. He graduated from Kanagawa University Faculty of Law and Economics. He decided the best “test site” for his spirit and body would be civil war-torn Afghanistan. Afghanistan In 1985, while sitting in his office at Tokyo's Shinjuku district he talked of preparations to go to Afghanistan. He would finance himself. He traveled to Peshawar, the capital of Pakistan's Northwest Frontier Province. He carried 10 thousand dollars to distribute to the mujahideen. He raised the money from his company. Peshawar was the seat of the Afghanistan resistance movement. Seven Muslim guerilla parties had their headquarters there. Peshawar was then home to more than 3 million Afghan refugees. Tanaka joined Jamiat-e Islam