 The army's chain of command began with the Supreme Commander, who also held the posts of PDPA General Secretary and head of state.The order of precedence continued with the Minister of National Defence, the Deputy Minister of National Defence, Chief of the General Staff, Chief of Army Operations, Air and Air Defence Commander and ended with the Chief of Intelligence.Of the 8,000 strong officer corps in 1978, between 600 and 800 were communists.