Motto:لا إله إلا الله، محمد رسول الله Lā ʾilāha ʾillā llāh, Muhammadun rasūlu llāh "There is no god but Allah; Muhammad is the messenger of Allah." (Shahadah)
Some scholars suggest that the root name Afghān is derived from the Sanskrit word Aśvakan, which was the name used for ancient inhabitants of the Hindu Kush.[39]Aśvakan literally means "horsemen", "horse breeders", or "cavalrymen" (from aśva, the Sanskrit and Avestan words for "horse").[40]
Historically, the ethnonym Afghān was used to refer to ethnic Pashtuns.[41] The Arabic and Persian form of the name, Afġān, was first attested in the 10th-century geography book Hudud al-'Alam.[42] The last part of the name, "-stan", is a Persian suffix meaning "place of". Therefore, "Afghanistan" translates to "land of the Afghans", or "land of the Pashtuns" in a historical sense. According to the third edition of the Encyclopedia of Islam:[43]
The name Afghanistan (Afghānistān, land of the Afghans / Pashtuns, afāghina, sing. afghān) can be traced to the early eighth/fourteenth century, when it designated the easternmost part of the Kartid realm. This name was later used for certain regions in the Ṣafavid and Mughal empires that were inhabited by Afghans. While based on a state-supporting elite of Abdālī / Durrānī Afghans, the Sadūzāʾī Durrānī polity that came into being in 1160 / 1747 was not called Afghanistan in its own day. The name became a state designation only during the colonial intervention of the nineteenth century.
Tents of Afghan nomads in the northern Badghis Province. Early peasant farming villages came into existence about 7,000 years ago.
Excavations of prehistoric sites suggest that humans were living in what is now Afghanistan at least 50,000 years ago, and that farming communities in the area were among the earliest in the world. An important site of early historical activities, many believe that Afghanistan compares to Egypt in the historical value of its archaeological sites.[45][46] Artifacts typical of the Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic, Bronze, and Iron Ages have been found in Afghanistan. Urban civilization is believed to have begun as early as 3000 BCE, and the early city of Mundigak (near Kandahar in the south of the country) was a center of the Helmand culture. More recent findings established that the Indus Valley Civilization stretched up towards modern-day Afghanistan. An Indus Valley site has been found on the Oxus River at Shortugai in northern Afghanistan.[47][48][49]
After 2000 BCE successive waves of semi-nomadic people from Central Asia began moving south into Afghanistan; among them were many Indo-European-speaking Indo-Iranians. These tribes later migrated further into South Asia, Western Asia, and toward Europe via the area north of the Caspian Sea. The region at the time was referred to as Ariana.[45][50] By the middle of the 6th century BCE, the Achaemenids overthrew the Medes and incorporated Arachosia, Aria, and Bactria within its eastern boundaries. An inscription on the tombstone of Darius I of Persia mentions the Kabul Valley in a list of the 29 countries that he had conquered.[51] The region of Arachosia, around Kandahar in modern-day southern Afghanistan, used to be primarily Zoroastrian and played a key role in the transfer of the Avesta to Persia and is thus considered by some to be the "second homeland of Zoroastrianism".[52][53][54]
Alexander the Great and his Macedonian forces arrived in Afghanistan in 330 BCE after defeating Darius III of Persia a year earlier in the Battle of Gaugamela. Following Alexander's brief occupation, the successor state of the Seleucid Empire controlled the region until 305 BCE, when they gave much of it to the Maurya Empire as part of an alliance treaty. The Mauryans controlled the area south of the Hindu Kush until they were overthrown in about 185 BCE. Their decline began 60 years after Ashoka's rule ended, leading to the Hellenistic reconquest by the Greco-Bactrians. Much of it soon broke away and became part of the Indo-Greek Kingdom. They were defeated and expelled by the Indo-Scythians in the late 2nd century BCE.[55][56] The Silk Road appeared during the first century BCE, and Afghanistan flourished with trade, with routes to China, India, Persia, and north to the cities of Bukhara, Samarkand, and Khiva in present-day Uzbekistan.[57] Goods and ideas were exchanged at this center point, such as Chinese silk, Persian silver and Roman gold, while the region of present Afghanistan was mining and trading lapis lazuli stones[58] mainly from the Badakhshan region.
During the first century BCE, the Parthian Empire subjugated the region but lost it to their Indo-Parthian vassals. In the mid-to-late first century CE the vast Kushan Empire, centered in Afghanistan, became great patrons of Buddhist culture, making Buddhism flourish throughout the region. The Kushans were overthrown by the Sassanids in the 3rd century CE, though the Indo-Sassanids continued to rule at least parts of the region. They were followed by the Kidarites who, in turn, was replaced by the Hephthalites. They were replaced by the Turk Shahi in the 7th century. The Buddhist Turk Shahi of Kabul was replaced by a Hindu dynasty before the Saffarids conquered the area in 870, this Hindu dynasty was called Hindu Shahi.[59] Much of the northeastern and southern areas of the country remained dominated by Buddhist culture.[60][61]
In 1219 CE, Genghis Khan and his Mongol army overran the region. His troops are said to have annihilated the Khwarazmian cities of Herat and Balkh as well as Bamyan.[78] The destruction caused by the Mongols forced many locals to return to an agrarian rural society.[79] Mongol rule continued with the Ilkhanate in the northwest while the Khalji dynasty administered the Afghan tribal areas south of the Hindu Kush until the invasion of Timur (aka Tamerlane), who established the Timurid Empire in 1370. Under the rule of Shah Rukh, the city of Herat[80] served as the focal point of the Timurid Renaissance, whose glory matched Florence of the Italian Renaissance as the center of a cultural rebirth.[81][82]
In the early 16th century Babur arrived from Ferghana and captured Kabul from the Arghun dynasty.[83]Babur would go on to conquer the Afghan Lodi dynasty who had ruled the Delhi Sultanate in the First Battle of Panipat.[84] Between the 16th and 18th century, the Uzbek Khanate of Bukhara, Iranian Safavids, and Indian Mughals ruled parts of the territory.[85] During the medieval period, the northwestern area of Afghanistan was referred to by the regional name Khorasan, which was commonly used up to the 19th century among natives to describe their country.[86][87][88][89]
Map of the Hotak Empire at its height in 1728, disputed between Hussain Hotak (centered in Kandahar) and Ashraf Hotak (centered in Isfahan)
In 1709, Mirwais Hotak, a local Ghilzai tribal leader, successfully rebelled against the Safavids. He defeated Gurgin Khan, the Georgian governor of Kandahar under the Safavids, and established his own kingdom.[90] Mirwais died in 1715, and was succeeded by his brother Abdul Aziz, who was soon killed by Mirwais's son Mahmud for possibly planning to sign a peace with the Safavids. Mahmud led the Afghan army in 1722 to the Persian capital of Isfahan, and captured the city after the Battle of Gulnabad and proclaimed himself King of Persia.[90] The Afghan dynasty was ousted from Persia by Nader Shah after the 1729 Battle of Damghan.
In 1738, Nader Shah and his forces captured Kandahar in the siege of Kandahar, the last Hotak stronghold, from Shah Hussain Hotak. Soon after, the Persian and Afghan forces invaded India, Nader Shah had plundered Delhi, alongside his 16-year-old commander, Ahmad Shah Durrani who had assisted him on these campaigns. Nader Shah was assassinated in 1747.[91][92]
After the death of Nader Shah in 1747, Ahmad Shah Durrani had returned to Kandahar with a contingent of 4,000 Pashtuns. The Abdalis had "unanimously accepted" Ahmad Shah as their new leader. With his ascension in 1747, Ahmad Shah had led multiple campaigns against the Mughal empire, Maratha empire, and then-receding Afsharid empire. Ahmad Shah had captured Kabul and Peshawar from the Mughal appointed governor, Nasir Khan. Ahmad Shah had then conquered Herat in 1750, and had also captured Kashmir in 1752.[93] Ahmad Shah had launched two campaigns into Khorasan, 1750–1751 and 1754–1755.[94] His first campaign had seen the siege of Mashhad, however, he was forced to retreat after four months. In November 1750, he moved to siege Nishapur, but he was unable to capture the city and was forced to retreat in early 1751. Ahmad Shah returned in 1754; he captured Tun, and on 23 July, he sieged Mashhad once again. Mashhad had fallen on 2 December, but Shahrokh was reappointed in 1755. He was forced to give up Torshiz, Bakharz, Jam, Khaf, and Turbat-e Haidari to the Afghans, as well as accept Afghan sovereignty. Following this, Ahmad Shah sieged Nishapur once again, and captured it.
Ahmad Shah invaded India eight times during his reign,[95] beginning in 1748. Crossing the Indus River, his armies sacked and absorbed Lahore into the Durrani Realm. He met Mughal armies at the Battle of Manupur (1748), where he was defeated and forced to retreat back to Afghanistan.[96] He returned the next year in 1749 and captured the area around Lahore and Punjab, presenting it as an Afghan victory for this campaign.[97] From 1749 to 1767, Ahmad Shah led six more invasions, the most important being the last; the Third Battle of Panipat created a power vacuum in northern India, halting Maratha expansion.
Ahmad Shah Durrani died in October 1772, and a civil war over succession followed, with his named successor, Timur Shah Durrani succeeding him after the defeat of his brother, Suleiman Mirza.[98] Timur Shah Durrani ascended to the throne in November 1772, having defeated a coalition under Shah Wali Khan and Humayun Mirza. Timur Shah began his reign by consolidating power toward himself and people loyal to him, purging Durrani Sardars and influential tribal leaders in Kabul and Kandahar. One of Timur Shah's reforms was to move the capital of the Durrani Empire from Kandahar to Kabul. Timur Shah fought multiple series of rebellions to consolidate the empire, and he also led campaigns into Punjab against the Sikhs like his father, though more successfully. The most prominent example of his battles during this campaign was when he led his forces under Zangi Khan Durrani – with over 18,000 men total of Afghan, Qizilbash, and Mongol cavalrymen – against over 60,000 Sikh men. The Sikhs lost over 30,000 in this battle and staged a Durrani resurgence in the Punjab region[99] The Durranis lost Multan in 1772 after Ahmad Shah's death. Following this victory, Timur Shah was able to lay siege to Multan and recapture it,[100] incorporating it into the Durrani Empire once again, reintegrating it as a province until the Siege of Multan (1818). Timur Shah was succeeded by his son Zaman Shah Durrani after his death in May 1793. Timur Shah's reign oversaw the attempted stabilization and consolidation of the empire. However, Timur Shah had over 24 sons, which plunged the empire in civil war over succession crises.[101]
Zaman Shah Durrani succeeded to the Durrani Throne following the death of his father, Timur Shah Durrani. His brothers Mahmud Shah Durrani and Humayun Mirza revolted against him, with Humayun centered in Kandahar and Mahmud Shah centered in Herat.[102] Zaman Shah would defeat Humayun and force the loyalty of Mahmud Shah Durrani.[102] Securing his position on the throne, Zaman Shah led three campaigns into Punjab. The first two campaigns captured Lahore, but he retreated due to intel about a possible Qajar invasion. Zaman Shah embarked on his third campaign for Punjab in 1800 to deal with a rebellious Ranjit Singh.[103] However, he was forced to withdraw, and Zaman Shah's reign was ended by Mahmud Shah Durrani.[103] However, just under two years into his reign, Mahmud Shah Durrani was deposed by his brother Shah Shuja Durrani on 13 July 1803.[104] Shah Shuja attempted to consolidate the Durrani Realm but was deposed by his brother at the Battle of Nimla (1809).[105] Mahmud Shah Durrani defeated Shah Shuja and forced him to flee, usurping the throne again. His second reign began on 3 May 1809.[106]
In 1839 a British expeditionary force marched into Afghanistan, invading the Principality of Qandahar, and in August 1839, seized Kabul. Dost Mohammad Khan defeated the British in the Parwan campaign, but surrendered following his victory. He was replaced with the former Durrani ruler Shah Shuja Durrani as the new ruler of Kabul, a de facto puppet of the British.[111][112] Following an uprising that saw the assassination of Shah Shuja, the 1842 retreat from Kabul of British-Indian forces and the annihilation of Elphinstone's army, and the punitive expedition of The Battle of Kabul that led to its sacking, the British gave up on their attempts to try to subjugate Afghanistan, allowing Dost Mohammad Khan to return as ruler. Following this, Dost Mohammad pursued a myriad of campaigns to unite most of Afghanistan in his reign, launching numerous incursions including against the surrounding states such as the Hazarajat campaign, conquest of Balkh, conquest of Kunduz, and the conquest of Kandahar. Dost Mohammad led his final campaign against Herat, conquering it and re-uniting Afghanistan. During his campaigns of re-unification, he held friendly relations with the British despite the First Anglo-Afghan War, and affirmed their status in the Second Anglo-Afghan treaty of 1857, while Bukhara and internal religious leaders pressured Dost Mohammad to invade India during the Indian Rebellion of 1857.[113]
Dost Mohammad died in June 1863, a few weeks after his successful campaign to Herat. Following his death, a civil war ensued among his sons, prominently Mohammad Afzal Khan, Mohammad Azam Khan, and Sher Ali Khan. Sher Ali won the resulting Afghan Civil War (1863–1869) and ruled Afghanistan until his death in 1879. In his final years, the British returned to Afghanistan in the Second Anglo-Afghan War to fight perceived Russian influence in the region. Sher Ali retreated to northern Afghanistan, intending to create a resistance there similar to his predecessors, Dost Mohammad Khan, and Wazir Akbar Khan. His untimely death however, saw Yaqub Khan declared the new Amir, leading to Britain gaining control of Afghanistan's foreign relations as part of the Treaty of Gandamak of 1879, making it an official British Protected State.[114][115]An uprising however, re-started the conflict, and Yaqub Khan was deposed. During this tumultuous period, Abdur Rahman Khan began his rise to power, becoming an eligible candidate to become Amir after he seized much of Northern Afghanistan. Abdur Rahman marched on Kabul, and was declared Amir, being recognized by the British as well. Another uprising by Ayub Khan threatened the British, where rebels confronted and defeated British forces in the Battle of Maiwand. Following up on his victory, Ayub Khan unsuccessfully besieged Kandahar, and his decisive defeat saw the end of the Second Anglo-Afghan War, with Abdur Rahman secured firmly as Amir.[116] In 1893, Abdur Rahman signed an agreement in which the ethnic Pashtun and Baloch territories were divided by the Durand Line, which forms the modern-day border between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Shia-dominated Hazarajat and pagan Kafiristan remained politically independent until being conquered by Abdur Rahman Khan in 1891–1896. He was known as the "Iron Amir" for his features and his ruthless methods against tribes.[117] He died in 1901, succeeded by his son, Habibullah Khan.
How can a small power like Afghanistan, which is like a goat between these lions [Britain and Russia] or a grain of wheat between two strong millstones of the grinding mill, stand in the midway of the stones without being ground to dust?
During the First World War, when Afghanistan was neutral, Habibullah Khan was met by officials of the central powers in the Niedermayer–Hentig Expedition. They called on Afghanistan to declare full independence from the United Kingdom, join them and attack British India, as part of the Hindu–German Conspiracy. The effort to bring Afghanistan into the Central Powers failed, but it sparked discontent among the population about maintaining neutrality with the British. Habibullah was assassinated in February 1919, and Amanullah Khan eventually assumed power. A staunch supporter of the 1915–1916 expeditions, Amanullah Khan invaded British India, beginning the Third Anglo-Afghan War, and entering British India via the Khyber Pass.[120]
After the end of the Third Anglo-Afghan War and the signing of the Treaty of Rawalpindi on 19 August 1919, Emir Amanullah Khan declared the Emirate of Afghanistan a sovereign and fully independent state. He moved to end his country's traditional isolation by establishing diplomatic relations with the international community, particularly with the Soviet Union and the Weimar Republic.[121][122] He proclaimed himself King of Afghanistan on 9 June 1926, forming the Kingdom of Afghanistan. He introduced several reforms intended to modernize his nation. A key force behind these reforms was Mahmud Tarzi, an ardent supporter of the education of women. He fought for Article 68 of Afghanistan's 1923 constitution, which made elementary education compulsory. Slavery was abolished in 1923.[123] King Amanullah's wife, Queen Soraya, was an important figure during this period in the fight for woman's education and against their oppression.[124]
Some of the reforms, such as the abolition of the traditional burqa for women and the opening of co-educational schools, alienated many tribal and religious leaders, leading to the Afghan Civil War (1928–1929). King Amanullah abdicated in January 1929, and soon after Kabul fell to Saqqawist forces led by Habibullah Kalakani.[125]Mohammed Nadir Shah, Amanullah's cousin, defeated and killed Kalakani in October 1929, and was declared King Nadir Shah.[126] He abandoned the reforms of King Amanullah in favor of a more gradual approach to modernization, but was assassinated in 1933 by Abdul Khaliq.[127]
Mohammed Zahir Shah succeeded to the throne and reigned as king from 1933 to 1973. During the tribal revolts of 1944–1947, King Zahir's reign was challenged by Zadran, Safi, Mangal, and Wazir tribesmen led by Mazrak Zadran, Salemai, and Mirzali Khan, among others – many of whom were Amanullah loyalists. Afghanistan joined the League of Nations in 1934. The 1930s saw the development of roads, infrastructure, the founding of a national bank, and increased education. Road links in the north played a large part in a growing cotton and textile industry.[128] The country built close relationships with the Axis powers, with Nazi Germany having the largest share in Afghan development at the time.[129]
King Zahir, the last reigning monarch of Afghanistan, who reigned from 1933 until 1973
Until 1946 King Zahir ruled with the assistance of his uncle, who held the post of prime minister and continued the policies of Nadir Shah. Another uncle, Shah Mahmud Khan, became prime minister in 1946 and experimented with allowing greater political freedom. He was replaced in 1953 by Mohammed Daoud Khan, a Pashtun nationalist who sought the creation of a Pashtunistan, leading to highly tense relations with Pakistan.[130] Daoud Khan pressed for social modernization reforms and sought a closer relationship with the Soviet Union. Afterward, the 1964 constitution was formed, and the first non-royal prime minister was sworn in.[128]
Zahir Shah, like his father Nadir Shah, had a policy of maintaining national independence while pursuing gradual modernization, creating nationalist feeling, and improving relations with the United Kingdom. Afghanistan was neither a participant in World War II nor aligned with either power bloc in the Cold War. However, it was a beneficiary of the latter rivalry as both the Soviet Union and the United States vied for influence by building Afghanistan's main highways, airports, and other vital infrastructure. On a per capita basis, Afghanistan received more Soviet development aid than any other country. In 1973, while the King was in Italy, Daoud Khan launched a bloodless coup and became the first president of Afghanistan, abolishing the monarchy.
In April 1978, the communist People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA) seized power in a bloody coup d'état against then-President Mohammed Daoud Khan, in what is called the Saur Revolution. The PDPA declared the establishment of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan, with its first leader named as People's Democratic Party General Secretary Nur Muhammad Taraki.[131] This would trigger a series of events that would dramatically turn Afghanistan from a poor and secluded (albeit peaceful) country to a hotbed of international terrorism.[132] The PDPA initiated various social, symbolic, and land distribution reforms that provoked strong opposition, while also brutally oppressing political dissidents. This caused unrest and quickly expanded into a state of civil war by 1979, waged by guerrilla mujahideen (and smaller Maoist guerrillas) against regime forces countrywide. It quickly turned into a proxy war as the Pakistani government provided these rebels with covert training centers, the United States supported them through Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI),[133] and the Soviet Union sent thousands of military advisers to support the PDPA regime.[134] Meanwhile, there was increasingly hostile friction between the competing factions of the PDPA– the dominant Khalq and the more moderate Parcham.[135]
In October 1979, PDPA General Secretary Taraki was assassinated in an internal coup orchestrated by then-prime minister Hafizullah Amin, who became the new general secretary of the People's Democratic Party. The situation in the country deteriorated under Amin, and thousands of people went missing.[136] Displeased with Amin's government, the Soviet Army invaded the country in December 1979, heading for Kabul and killing Amin.[137] A Soviet-organized regime, led by Parcham's Babrak Karmal but inclusive of both factions (Parcham and Khalq), filled the vacuum. Soviet troops in more substantial numbers were deployed to stabilize Afghanistan under Karmal, marking the beginning of the Soviet–Afghan War.[138] Lasting nine years, the war caused the deaths of between 562,000[139] and 2million Afghans,[140][141][142][143][144][145][146][excessive citations] and displaced about 6million people who subsequently fled Afghanistan, mainly to Pakistan and Iran.[147] Heavy air bombardment destroyed many countryside villages, millions of landmines were planted,[148] and some cities such as Herat and Kandahar were also damaged from bombardment. After the Soviet withdrawal, the civil war ensued until the communist regime under People's Democratic Party leader Mohammad Najibullah collapsed in 1992.[149][150][151]
The Soviet–Afghan War had drastic social effects on Afghanistan. The militarization of society led to heavily armed police, private bodyguards, openly armed civil defense groups, and other such things becoming the norm in Afghanistan for decades thereafter.[152] The traditional power structure had shifted from clergy, community elders, intelligentsia, and military in favor of powerful warlords.[153]
Development of the civil war from 1992 to late 2001
Another civil war broke out after the creation of a dysfunctional coalition government between leaders of various mujahideen factions. Amid a state of anarchy and factional infighting,[154][155][156] various mujahideen factions committed widespread rape, murder and extortion,[155][157][158] while Kabul was heavily bombarded and partially destroyed by the fighting.[158] Several failed reconciliations and alliances occurred between different leaders.[159] The Taliban emerged in September 1994 as a movement and militia of students (talib) from Islamic madrassas (schools) in Pakistan,[158][160] who soon had military support from Pakistan.[161] Taking control of Kandahar city that year,[158] they conquered more territories until finally driving out the government of Rabbani from Kabul in 1996,[162][163] where they established an emirate.[164] The Taliban were condemned internationally for the harsh enforcement of their interpretation of Islamic sharia law, which resulted in the brutal treatment of many Afghans, especially women.[165][166] During their rule, the Taliban and their allies committed massacres against Afghan civilians, denied UN food supplies to starving civilians and conducted a policy of scorched earth, burning vast areas of fertile land and destroying tens of thousands of homes.[167][168][169][170][171][172][excessive citations]
In October 2001, the United States invaded Afghanistan to remove the Taliban from power after they refused to hand over Osama bin Laden, the prime suspect of the September 11 attacks, who was a "guest" of the Taliban and was operating his al-Qaeda network in Afghanistan.[178][179][180] The majority of Afghans supported the American invasion.[181][182] During the initial invasion, US and UK forces bombed al-Qaeda training camps, and later working with the Northern Alliance, the Taliban regime came to an end.[183]
The Afghan government was able to build some democratic structures, adopting a constitution in 2004 with the name Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. Attempts were made, often with the support of foreign donor countries, to improve the country's economy, healthcare, education, transport, and agriculture. ISAF forces also began to train the Afghan National Security Forces. Following 2002, nearly five million Afghans were repatriated.[196] The number of NATO troops present in Afghanistan peaked at 140,000 in 2011,[197] dropping to about 16,000 in 2018.[198] In September 2014 Ashraf Ghani became president after the 2014 presidential election where for the first time in Afghanistan's history power was democratically transferred.[199][200][201] On 28 December 2014, NATO formally ended ISAF combat operations and transferred full security responsibility to the Afghan government. The NATO-led Operation Resolute Support was formed the same day as a successor to ISAF.[202][203] Thousands of NATO troops remained in the country to train and advise Afghan government forces[204] and continue their fight against the Taliban.[205] A report titled Body Count concluded that 106,000–170,000 civilians had been killed as a result of the fighting in Afghanistan at the hands of all parties to the conflict.[206]
On 19 February 2020, the US–Taliban deal was made in Qatar. The deal was one of the critical events that caused the collapse of the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF);[207] following the signing of the deal, the US dramatically reduced the number of air attacks and deprived the ANSF of a critical edge in fighting the Taliban insurgency, leading to the Taliban takeover of Kabul.[208]
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced on 14 April 2021 that the alliance had agreed to start withdrawing its troops from Afghanistan by 1 May.[209] Soon after NATO troops began withdrawing, the Taliban launched an offensive against the Afghan government and quickly advanced in front of collapsing Afghan government forces.[210][211] The Taliban captured the capital city of Kabul on 15 August 2021, after regaining control over a vast majority of Afghanistan. Several foreign diplomats and Afghan government officials, including president Ashraf Ghani,[212] were evacuated from the country, with many Afghan civilians attempting to flee along with them.[213] On 17 August, first vice president Amrullah Saleh proclaimed himself caretaker president and announced the formation of an anti-Taliban front with a reported 6,000+ troops[214][215] in the Panjshir Valley, along with Ahmad Massoud.[216][217] However, by 6 September, the Taliban had taken control of most of Panjshir province, with resistance fighters retreating to the mountains.[218] Clashes in the valley ceased mid-September.[219]
Western nations suspended most of their humanitarian aid to Afghanistan following the Taliban's August 2021 takeover of the country; the World Bank and International Monetary Fund also halted their payments.[234][235] More than half of Afghanistan's 39 million people faced an acute food shortage in October 2021.[236] Human Rights Watch reported on 11 November 2021 that Afghanistan was facing widespread famine due to an economic and banking crisis.[237] The Taliban have significantly tackled corruption, now being placed as 150th on the corruption watchdog perception index. The Taliban have also reportedly reduced bribery and extortion in public service areas.[238] At the same time, the human rights situation in the country has deteriorated.[239] Following the 2001 invasion, more than 5.7million refugees returned to Afghanistan;[240] however, in 2021, 2.6million Afghans remained refugees, primarily in Iran and Pakistan, and another 4 million were internally displaced.[241]
In October 2023, the Pakistani government ordered the expulsion of Afghans from Pakistan.[242] Iran also decided to deport Afghan nationals back to Afghanistan.[243] Taliban authorities condemned the deportations of Afghans as an "inhuman act".[244] Afghanistan faced a humanitarian crisis in late 2023.[245]
On 10 November 2024, Afghanistan's Foreign Ministry confirmed that Taliban representatives would attend the COP29 summit, marking the first time the country participated since the Taliban's return to power in 2021. Afghanistan had been barred from previous summits due to the lack of global recognition of the Taliban regime. However, the Taliban's environmental officials stressed that climate change is a humanitarian issue, not a political one, and should be addressed regardless of political differences.[246]
Afghanistan is located in South-Central Asia.[247][248][249][250][251] The region centered at Afghanistan is considered the "crossroads of Asia",[252] and the country has had the nickname Heart of Asia.[253] The renowned Urdu poet Allama Iqbal once wrote about the country:
Asia is a body of water and earth, of which the Afghan nation is the heart. From its discord, the discord of Asia; and from its accord, the accord of Asia.
The geography in Afghanistan is varied, but is mostly mountainous and rugged, with some unusual mountain ridges accompanied by plateaus and river basins.[258] It is dominated by the Hindu Kush range, the western extension of the Himalayas that stretches to eastern Tibet via the Pamir Mountains and Karakoram Mountains in Afghanistan's far north-east. Most of the highest points are in the east consisting of fertile mountain valleys, often considered part of the "Roof of the World". The Hindu Kush ends at the west-central highlands, creating plains in the north and southwest, namely the Turkestan Plains and the Sistan Basin; these two regions consist of rolling grasslands and semi-deserts, and hot windy deserts, respectively.[259] Forests exist in the corridor between Nuristan and Paktika provinces (see East Afghan montane conifer forests),[260] and tundra in the northeast. The country's highest point is Noshaq, at 7,492m (24,580ft) above sea level.[261] The lowest point lies in Jowzjan Province along the Amu River bank, at 258m (846ft) above sea level.
Despite having numerous rivers and reservoirs, large parts of the country are dry. The endorheic Sistan Basin is one of the driest regions in the world.[262] The Amu Darya rises at the north of the Hindu Kush, while the nearby Hari Rud flows west towards Herat, and the Arghandab River from the central region southwards. To the south and west of the Hindu Kush flow a number of streams that are tributaries of the Indus River,[258] such as the Helmand River. The Kabul River flows in an easterly direction to the Indus ending at the Indian Ocean.[263] Afghanistan receives heavy snow during the winter in the Hindu Kush and Pamir Mountains, and the melting snow in the spring season enters the rivers, lakes, and streams.[264][265] However, two-thirds of the country's water flows into the neighboring countries of Iran, Pakistan, and Turkmenistan. As reported in 2010, the state needs more than US$2billion to rehabilitate its irrigation systems so that the water is properly managed.[266]
In Afghanistan, forest cover is around 2% of the total land area, equivalent to 1,208,440 hectares (ha) of forest in 2020, which was unchanged from 1990. In 2020, naturally regenerating forest covered 1,208,440 hectares (ha). Of the naturally regenerating forest, 0% was reported to be primary forest (consisting of native tree species with no clearly visible indications of human activity) and around 0% of the forest area was found within protected areas. For the year 2015, 100% of the forest area was reported to be under public ownership.[267][268]
Afghanistan has a continental climate with harsh winters in the central highlands, the glaciated northeast (around Nuristan), and the Wakhan Corridor, where the average temperature in January is below −15°C (5°F) and can reach −26°C (−15°F),[258] and hot summers in the low-lying areas of the Sistan Basin of the southwest, the Jalalabad basin in the east, and the Turkestan plains along the Amu River in the north, where temperatures average over 35°C (95°F) in July[261][274] and can go over 43°C (109°F).[258] The country is generally arid in the summers, with most rainfall falling between December and April. The lower areas of northern and western Afghanistan are the driest, with precipitation more common in the east. Although proximate to India, Afghanistan is mostly outside the monsoon zone,[258] except the Nuristan Province which occasionally receives summer monsoon rain.[275]
Gazelles, wild pigs and jackals populate the steppe plains of the south and west, while mongoose and cheetahs exist in the semi-desert south.[290]Marmots and ibex also live in the high mountains of Afghanistan, and pheasants exist in some parts of the country.[291] The Afghan hound is a native breed of dog known for its fast speed and its long hair; it is relatively known in the west.[292]
A traditional instrument of governance in Afghanistan is the loya jirga (grand assembly), a Pashtun consultative meeting that was mainly organized for choosing a new head of state, adopting a new constitution, or to settle national or regional issue such as war.[297] Loya jirgas have been held since at least 1747,[298] with the most recent one occurring in August 2020.[299][300]
Hours after the final flight of American troops left Kabul on 30 August, a Taliban official interviewed said that a new government would likely be announced as early as Friday 3 September after Jumu'ah. It was added that Hibatullah Akhundzada would be officially named Emir, with cabinet ministers being revealed at the Arg in an official ceremony. Abdul Ghani Baradar would be named head of government as Prime Minister, while other important positions would go to Sirajuddin Haqqani and Mullah Yaqoob. Beneath the supreme leader, day-to-day governance will be entrusted to the cabinet.[306]
In a report by CNN-News18, sources said the new government was going to be governed similarly to Iran with Hibatullah Akhundzada as supreme leader similar to the role of Saayid Ali Khamenei, and would be based out of Kandahar. Baradar or Yaqoob would be head of government as Prime minister. The government's ministries and agencies will be under a cabinet presided over by the Prime Minister. The Supreme Leader would preside over an executive body known as the Supreme Council with anywhere from 11 to 72 members. Abdul Hakim Haqqani is likely to be promoted to Chief justice. According to the report, the new government will take place within the framework of an amended 1964 Constitution of Afghanistan.[307] Government formation was delayed due to concerns about forming a broad-based government acceptable to the international community.[308] It was later added however that the Taliban's Rahbari Shura, the group's leadership council was divided between the hardline Haqqani Network and moderate Abdul Ghani Baradar over appointments needed to form an "inclusive" government. Reports claimed that this culminated in a skirmish which led to Baradar being injured and treated in Pakistan, however this was denied by Baradar himself.[309][310]
As of early September 2021 the Taliban were planning the cabinet to be men-only. Journalists and other human rights activists, mostly women, protested in Herat and Kabul, calling for women to be included.[311] The acting Cabinet announced on 7 September was men-only, and the Ministry of Women's Affairs was abolished.[294]
As of June 2024, no country has recognized the Taliban government as the legitimate authorities of Afghanistan, with the U.N adding that recognition was impossible so long as restrictions on female education and employment remained.[312][313] On 16 September 2024, the Taliban suspended polio vaccination campaigns in Afghanistan, as reported by the United Nations, posing a significant risk to global polio eradication efforts.[314]
Afghanistan is administratively divided into 34 provinces (wilayat).[315] Each province has a governor and a capital. The country is further divided into nearly 400 provincial districts, each of which normally covers a city or several villages. Each district is represented by a district governor.
The provincial governors are now appointed by the Prime Minister of Afghanistan, and the district governors are selected by the provincial governors.[316] The provincial governors are representatives of the central government in Kabul and are responsible for all administrative and formal issues within their provinces. There are also provincial councils that are elected through direct and general elections for four years.[317] The functions of provincial councils are to take part in provincial development planning and to participate in the monitoring and appraisal of other provincial governance institutions.
According to article 140 of the constitution and the presidential decree on electoral law, mayors of cities should be elected through free and direct elections for a four-year term. In practice however, mayors are appointed by the government.[318]
Afghanistan became a member of the United Nations in 1946.[319] Historically, Afghanistan had strong relations with Germany, one of the first countries to recognize Afghanistan's independence in 1919; the Soviet Union, which provided much aid and military training for Afghanistan's forces and includes the signing of a Treaty of Friendship in 1921 and 1978; and India, with which a friendship treaty was signed in 1950.[320] Relations with Pakistan have often been tense for various reasons such as the Durand Line border issue and alleged Pakistani involvement in Afghan insurgent groups.
The present Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is currently internationally unrecognized, but has had notable unofficial ties with China, Pakistan, and Qatar.[321][322] Under the previous Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, it enjoyed cordial relations with a number of NATO and allied nations, particularly the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, Australia, and Turkey. In 2012, the United States and the then-republic in Afghanistan signed their Strategic Partnership Agreement in which Afghanistan became a major non-NATO ally.[323] Such qualification was rescinded by US President Joe Biden in July 2022.[324]
Homosexuality is taboo in Afghan society;[327] according to the Penal Code, homosexual intimacy is punished by up to a year in prison.[328] Under Sharia law offenders can be punished by death.[329][330] However, an ancient tradition involving male homosexual acts between children and older men (typically wealthy warlords or elite people) called bacha bazi persists.
Religious minorities such as Sikhs,[331] Hindus,[332] and Christians have reportedly faced persecution.[333][334]
Since May 2022, all women in Afghanistan have been required by law to wear full-body coverings when in public (either a burqa or an abaya paired with a niqāb, which leaves only the eyes uncovered).[335][336] First Deputy LeaderSirajuddin Haqqani claimed the decree is only advisory and no form of hijab is compulsory in Afghanistan,[337] though this contradicts the reality.[338] It has been speculated that there is a genuine internal policy division over women's rights between hardliners, including leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, and pragmatists, though they publicly present a united front.[339] Another decree was issued shortly after the first, requiring female TV presenters to cover their faces during broadcasts.[340] Since the Taliban takeover, suicides among women have become more common, and the country could now be one of the few where the rate of suicide among women surpasses that among men.[341][342][343]
In May 2022, the Taliban dissolved Afghanistan's Human Rights Commission along with four other government departments, citing the country's budget deficit.[344]
Workers processing pomegranates (anaar), for which Afghanistan is famous in Asia
Afghanistan's nominal GDP was $20.1billion in 2020, or $81billion by purchasing power parity (PPP).[21] Its GDP per capita is $2,459 (PPP) and $611 by nominal.[21] Despite having $1trillion or more in mineral deposits,[345] it remains one of the world's least developed countries. Afghanistan's rough physical geography and its landlocked status has been cited as reasons why the country has always been among the least developed in the modern era – a factor where progress is also slowed by contemporary conflict and political instability.[258] The country imports over $7billion worth of goods but exports only $784million, mainly fruits and nuts. It has $2.8billion in external debt.[261] The service sector contributed the most to the GDP (55.9%) followed by agriculture (23%) and industry (21.1%).[346]
Afghan rugs are one of Afghanistan's main exports.
One of the main drivers for the current economic recovery is the return of over 5million expatriates, who brought with them entrepreneurship and wealth-creating skills as well as much needed funds to start up businesses. Many Afghans are now involved in construction, which is one of the largest industries in the country.[349] Some of the major national construction projects include the $35billion New Kabul City next to the capital, the Aino Mena project in Kandahar, and the Ghazi Amanullah Khan Town near Jalalabad.[350][351][352] Similar development projects have also begun in Herat, Mazar-e-Sharif, and other cities.[353] An estimated 400,000 people enter the labor market each year.[354]
Several small companies and factories began operating in different parts of the country, which not only provide revenues to the government but also create new jobs. Improvements to the business environment have resulted in more than $1.5billion in telecom investment and created more than 100,000 jobs since 2003.[355]Afghan rugs are becoming popular again, allowing many carpet dealers around the country to hire more workers; in 2016–17 it was the fourth most exported group of items.[356]
Afghanistan is a member of WTO, SAARC, ECO, and OIC. It holds an observer status in SCO. In 2018, a majority of imports come from either Iran, China, Pakistan and Kazakhstan, while 84% of exports are to Pakistan and India.[357]
Since the Taliban's takeover of the country in August 2021, the United States has frozen about $9billion in assets belonging to the Afghan central bank,[358] blocking the Taliban from accessing billions of dollars held in US bank accounts.[359][360]
The GDP of Afghanistan is estimated to have dropped by 20% following the Taliban return to power. Following this, after months of free-fall, the Afghan economy began stabilizing, as a result of the Taliban's restrictions on smuggled imports, limits on banking transactions, and UN aid. In 2023, the Afghan economy began seeing signs of revival. This has also been followed by stable exchange rates, low inflation, stable revenue collection, and the rise of trade in exports.[361] In the third quarter of 2023, the Afghani rose to be the best performing currency in the world, climbing over 9% against the US dollar.[362]
Agricultural production is the backbone of Afghanistan's economy[363] and has traditionally dominated the economy, employing about 40% of the workforce as of 2018.[364] The country is known for producing pomegranates, grapes, apricots, melons, and several other fresh and dry fruits. Afghanistan also became the world's top producer of cannabis in 2010.[365] In March 2023, however, cannabis production was banned by a decree from Hibatullah Akhundzada.[366]
Saffron, the most expensive spice, grows in Afghanistan, particularly Herat Province. In recent years, there has been an uptick in saffron production, which authorities and farmers are using to try to replace poppy cultivation. Between 2012 and 2019, the saffron cultivated and produced in Afghanistan was consecutively ranked the world's best by the International Taste and Quality Institute.[367][368] Production hit record high in 2019 (19,469kg of saffron), and one kilogram is sold domestically between $634 and $1147.[369]
The availability of cheap diesel-powered water pumps imported from China and Pakistan, and in the 2010s, of cheap solar power to pump water, resulted in expansion of agriculture and population in the southwestern deserts of Afghanistan in Kandahar, Helmand and Nimruz provinces in the 2010s. Wells have gradually been deepened, but water resources are limited. Opium is the major crop, but as of 2022, was under attack by the new Taliban government which, to suppress opium production, was systematically suppressing water pumping.[370][371] In a 2023 report, poppy cultivation in southern Afghanistan was reduced by over 80% as a result of Taliban campaigns to stop its use toward opium. This included a 99% reduction of opium growth in the Helmand Province.[372] In November 2023, a U.N report showed that in the entirety of Afghanistan, poppy cultivation dropped by over 95%, removing it from its place as being the world's largest opium producer.[373][374]
The country has significant amounts of lithium, copper, gold, coal, iron ore, and other minerals.[375][376][381] The Khanashincarbonatite in Helmand Province contains 1,000,000 tonnes (980,000 long tons; 1,100,000 short tons) of rare earth elements.[382] In 2007, a 30-year lease was granted for the Aynak copper mine to the China Metallurgical Group for $3billion,[383] making it the biggest foreign investment and private business venture in Afghanistan's history.[384] The state-run Steel Authority of India won the mining rights to develop the huge Hajigak iron ore deposit in central Afghanistan.[385] Government officials estimate that 30% of the country's untapped mineral deposits are worth at least $1 trillion.[377] One official asserted that "this will become the backbone of the Afghan economy" and a Pentagon memo stated that Afghanistan could become the "Saudi Arabia of lithium".[386] The lithium reserves of 21 Mio. tons could amount to the ones of Bolivia, which is currently viewed as the country with the largest lithium reserves.[387] Other larger deposits are the ones of bauxite and cobalt.[387]
Access to biocapacity in Afghanistan is lower than world average. In 2016, Afghanistan had 0.43 global hectares[388] of biocapacity per person within its territory, much less than the world average of 1.6 global hectares per person.[389] In 2016 Afghanistan used 0.73 global hectares of biocapacity per person—their ecological footprint of consumption. This means they use just under double as much biocapacity as Afghanistan contains. As a result, Afghanistan is running a biocapacity deficit.[388]
In September 2023, the Taliban signed mining contracts worth $6.5 billion, with extractions based on gold, iron, lead, and zinc in the provinces of Herat, Ghor, Logar, and Takhar.[390]
According to the World Bank, 98% of the rural population have access to electricity in 2018, up from 28% in 2008.[391] Overall the figure stands at 98.7%.[392] As of 2016, Afghanistan produces 1,400 megawatts of power, but still imports the majority of electricity via transmission lines from Iran and the Central Asian states.[393] The majority of electricity production is via hydropower, helped by the amount of rivers and streams that flow from the mountains.[394] However electricity is not always reliable and blackouts happen, including in Kabul.[395] In recent years an increasing number of solar, biomass and wind power plants have been constructed.[396] Currently under development are the CASA-1000 project which will transmit electricity from Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, and the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline.[395] Power is managed by the Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat (DABS, Afghanistan Electricity Company).
Tourism is a small industry in Afghanistan due to security issues. Nevertheless, some 20,000 foreign tourists visit the country annually as of 2016.[397] In particular an important region for domestic and international tourism is the picturesque Bamyan Valley, which includes lakes, canyons and historical sites, helped by the fact it is in a safe area away from insurgent activity.[398][399] Smaller numbers visit and trek in regions such as the Wakhan Valley, which is also one of the world's most remote communities.[400] From the late 1960s onwards, Afghanistan was a popular stop on the famous hippie trail, attracting many Europeans and Americans. Coming from Iran, the trail traveled through various Afghan provinces and cities including Herat, Kandahar and Kabul before crossing to northern Pakistan, northern India, and Nepal.[401][402] Tourism peaked in 1977, the year before the start of political instability and armed conflict.[403]
The city of Ghazni has significant history and historical sites, and together with Bamyan city have in recent years been voted Islamic Cultural Capital and South Asia Cultural Capital respectively.[404] The cities of Herat, Kandahar, Balkh, and Zaranj are also very historic. The Minaret of Jam in the Hari River valley is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. A cloak reputedly worn by Islam's prophet Muhammad is kept in the Shrine of the Cloak in Kandahar, a city founded by Alexander the Great and the first capital of Afghanistan. The citadel of Alexander in the western city of Herat has been renovated in recent years and is a popular attraction. In the north of the country is the Shrine of Ali, believed by many to be the location where Ali was buried.[405] The National Museum of Afghanistan in Kabul hosts a large number of Buddhist, Bactrian Greek and early Islamic antiquities; the museum suffered greatly by civil war but has been slowly restoring since the early 2000s.[406]
Unexpectedly, tourism has seen development in Afghanistan following the Taliban takeover. Active efforts by the Taliban has seen tourism increase from 691 tourists in 2021, to 2,300 in 2022. A sharp increase of over 120% was observed from 2022 to 2023, reaching nearly 5,200 tourists, with some estimates of between 7,000 and 10,000.[407][408][409] This is however, threatened from ISIS-K, who held responsibility for attacks on tourists such as the 2024 Bamyan shooting.[410]
Telecommunication services in Afghanistan are provided by Afghan Telecom, Afghan Wireless, Etisalat, MTN Group, and Roshan. The country uses its own space satellite called Afghansat 1, which provides services to millions of phone, internet, and television subscribers. By 2001 following years of civil war, telecommunications was virtually a non-existent sector, but by 2016 it had grown to a $2billion industry, with 22million mobile phone subscribers and 5million internet users. The sector employs at least 120,000 people nationwide.[411]
Due to Afghanistan's geography, transport between various parts of the country has historically been difficult. The backbone of Afghanistan's road network is Highway 1, often called the "Ring Road", which extends for 2,210 kilometres (1,370mi) and connects five major cities: Kabul, Ghazni, Kandahar, Herat and Mazar-i-Sharif,[412] with spurs to Kunduz and Jalalabad and various border crossings, while skirting around the mountains of the Hindu Kush.[413]
The Ring Road is crucially important for domestic and international trade and the economy.[414] A key portion of the Ring Road is the Salang Tunnel, completed in 1964, which facilitates travel through the Hindu Kush mountain range and connects northern and southern Afghanistan.[415] It is the only land route that connects Central Asia to the Indian subcontinent.[416] Several mountain passes allow travel between the Hindu Kush in other areas. Serious traffic accidents are common on Afghan roads and highways, particularly on the Kabul–Kandahar and the Kabul–Jalalabad Road.[417] Traveling by bus in Afghanistan remains dangerous due to militant activities.[418]
The country has three rail links: one, a 75-kilometre (47mi) line from Mazar-i-Sharif to the Uzbekistan border;[420] a 10-kilometre (6.2mi) long line from Toraghundi to the Turkmenistan border (where it continues as part of Turkmen Railways); and a short link from Aqina across the Turkmen border to Kerki, which is planned to be extended further across Afghanistan.[421] These lines are used for freight only and there is no passenger service. A rail line between Khaf, Iran and Herat, western Afghanistan, intended for both freight and passengers, was under construction as of 2019.[422][423] About 125 kilometres (78mi) of the line will lie on the Afghan side.[424][425]
Private vehicle ownership has increased substantially since the early 2000s. Taxis are yellow and consist of both cars and auto rickshaws.[426] In rural Afghanistan, villagers often use donkeys, mules or horses to transport or carry goods. Camels are primarily used by the Kochi nomads.[292] Bicycles are popular throughout Afghanistan.[427]
A Cold War-era CIA map showing traditional Afghan tribal territories. Pashtun tribes form the world's largest tribal society.
Population
The population of Afghanistan was estimated at 32.9million as of 2019 by the Afghanistan Statistics and Information Authority,[429] whereas the UN estimates over 38.0million.[430] In 1979 the total population was reported to be about 15.5million.[431] About 23.9% of them are urbanite, 71.4% live in rural areas, and the remaining 4.7% are nomadic.[432] An additional 3million or so Afghans are temporarily housed in neighboring Pakistan and Iran, most of whom were born and raised in those two countries. As of 2013, Afghanistan was the largest refugee-producing country in the world, a title held for 32 years.
The current population growth rate is 2.37%,[261] one of the highest in the world outside of Africa. This population is expected to reach 82million by 2050 if current population trends continue.[433] The population of Afghanistan increased steadily until the 1980s, when civil war caused millions to flee to other countries such as Pakistan.[434] Millions have since returned and the war conditions contribute to the country having the highest fertility rate outside Africa.[435] Afghanistan's healthcare has recovered since the turn of the century, causing falls in infant mortality and increases in life expectancy, although it has the lowest life expectance of any country outside Africa. This (along with other factors such as returning refugees) caused rapid population growth in the 2000s that has only recently started to slow down.[citation needed] The Gini coefficient in 2008 was 27.8.[436]
Fertility rate
Afghanistan 2024 total fertility rate has been estimated at 4.4.[437] In 2022 it was 4.5, about twice the world average rate.[438] The rate has fallen since the early 1980s.[439]
Urbanization
As estimated by the CIA World Factbook, 26% of the population was urbanized as of 2020. This is one of the lowest figures in the world; in Asia it is only higher than Cambodia, Nepal and Sri Lanka. Urbanization has increased rapidly, particularly in the capital Kabul, due to returning refugees from Pakistan and Iran after 2001, internally displaced people, and rural migrants.[440] Urbanization in Afghanistan is different from typical urbanization in that it is centered on just a few cities.[441]
The only city with over a million residents is its capital, Kabul, located in the east of the country. The other large cities are located generally in the "ring" around the Central Highlands, namely Kandahar in the south, Herat in the west, Mazar-i-Sharif, Kunduz in the north, and Jalalabad in the east.[432]
Afghans are divided into several ethnolinguistic groups. According to research data by several institutions in 2019, the Pashtuns are the largest ethnic group, comprising 42%, followed by Tajiks, comprising 27%[4][5][6][443][8] of the country's population. The other two major ethnic groups are the Hazaras and Uzbeks, each at 9%. A further 10 other ethnic groups are recognized and each are represented in the Afghan National Anthem.[444]
Dari and Pashto are the official languages of Afghanistan; bilingualism is very common.[445] Dari, which is also referred to as Eastern Persian as it is a variety of and mutually intelligible with Persian (and very often called 'Farsi' by some Afghans like in Iran), functions as the lingua franca in Kabul as well as in much of the northern and northwestern parts of the country.[446] Native speakers of Dari, of any ethnicity, are sometimes called Farsiwans.[447] Pashto is the native tongue of the Pashtuns, although many of them are also fluent in Dari while some non-Pashtuns are fluent in Pashto. Despite the Pashtuns having been dominant in Afghan politics for centuries, Dari remained the preferred language for government and bureaucracy.[448] According to CIA World Factbook, Dari Persian is spoken by 78% (L1 + L2) and functions as the lingua franca, while Pashto is spoken by 50%, Uzbek 10%, English 5%, Turkmen 2%, Urdu 2%, Pashayi 1%, Nuristani 1%, Arabic 1%, and Balochi 1% (2021 est). Data represent the most widely spoken languages; shares sum to more than 100% because there is much bilingualism in the country and because respondents were allowed to select more than one language. There are a number of smaller regional languages, including Uzbek, Turkmen, Balochi, Pashayi, and Nuristani.[261]
The CIA estimated in 2009 that 99.7% of the Afghan population was Muslim[261] and most are thought to adhere to the SunniHanafi school with the majority of them being Deobandis.[452][453] According to Pew Research Center, as much as 90% are of the Sunni denomination, 7% Shia and 3% non-denominational.[454] The CIA Factbook variously estimates up to 89.7% Sunni or up to 15% Shia.[261]
Afghan Sikhs and Hindus are also found in certain major cities (namely Kabul, Jalalabad, Ghazni, Kandahar)[455][456] accompanied by gurdwaras and mandirs.[457] According to Deutsche Welle in September 2021, 250 remain in the country after 67 were evacuated to India.[458]
There was a small Jewish community in Afghanistan, living mainly in Herat and Kabul. Over the years, this small community was forced to leave due to decades of warfare and religious persecution. By the end of the twentieth century, nearly the entire community had emigrated to Israel and the United States, with one known exception, Herat-born Zablon Simintov. He remained for years, being the caretaker of the only remaining Afghan synagogue. He left the country for the US after the second Taliban takeover. A woman who left shortly after him has since been identified as the likely last Jew in Afghanistan.[459][460][461]
Afghan Christians, who number 500–8,000, practice their faith secretly due to intense societal opposition, and there are no public churches.[462][463]
UNESCO Institute of Statistics Afghanistan Literacy Rate among population aged 15+ (1980–2018)
Education in Afghanistan is overseen by the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Higher Education. There are over 16,000 schools in the country and roughly 9million students. Of this, about 60% are males and 40% females. However, the new regime has thus far forbidden female teachers and female students from returning to secondary schools.[464][465] Over 174,000 students are enrolled in different universities around the country. About 21% of these are females.[466] Former Education Minister Ghulam Farooq Wardak had stated that construction of 8,000 schools is required for the remaining children who are deprived of formal learning.[467] As of 2018 the literacy rate of the population age 15 and older is 43.02% (males 55.48% and females 29.81%).[468]
After the Taliban regained power in 2021, it became unclear to what extent female education would continue in the country. In March 2022, after they had been closed for some time, it was announced that secondary education would be reopened shortly. However, shortly before reopening, the order was rescinded and schools for older girls remained closed.[469] Despite the ban, six provinces, Balkh, Kunduz, Jowzjan, Sar-I-Pul, Faryab, and the Day Kundi, still allow girl's schools from grade 6 and up.[470][471] In December 2023, investigations were being held by the United Nations on the claim that Afghan girls of all ages were allowed to study at religious schools.[472] As of November 2024, some parts of the country allow women to attend religious schools to pursue dentistry, nursing, and other subjects.[473]
It was reported in 2006 that nearly 60% of the Afghan population lives within a two-hour walk of the nearest health facility.[479] The disability rate is also high in Afghanistan due to the decades of war.[480] It was reported recently that about 80,000 people are missing limbs.[481][482] Non-governmental charities such as Save the Children and Mahboba's Promise assist orphans in association with governmental structures.[483]
An Afghan family near Kholm, 1939 – most Afghans are tribal.
Afghans have both common cultural features and those that differ between the regions of Afghanistan, each with distinctive cultures partly as a result of geographic obstacles that divide the country.[258] Family is the mainstay of Afghan society and families are often headed by a patriarch.[484] In the southern and eastern region, the people live according to the Pashtun culture by following Pashtunwali (the Pashtun way).[485] Key tenets of Pashtunwali include hospitality, the provision of sanctuary to those seeking refuge, and revenge for the shedding of blood.[486] The Pashtuns are largely connected to the culture of Central Asia and the Iranian Plateau. The remaining Afghans are culturally Persian and Turkic. Some non-Pashtuns who live in proximity with Pashtuns have adopted Pashtunwali in a process called Pashtunization, while some Pashtuns have been Persianized. Those who have lived in Pakistan and Iran over the last 30 years have been further influenced by the cultures of those neighboring nations. The Afghan people are known to be strongly religious.[452]
Afghans, particularly Pashtuns, are noted for their tribal solidarity and high regard for personal honor.[487] There are various Afghan tribes, and an estimated 2–3million nomads.[488] Afghan culture is deeply Islamic,[489] but pre-Islamic practices persist.[490]Child marriage is prevalent;[491] the legal age for marriage is 16.[492] The most preferred marriage in Afghan society is to one's parallel cousin, and the groom is often expected to pay a bride price.[493]
In the villages, families typically occupy mudbrick houses, or compounds with mudbrick or stone walled houses. Villages typically have a headman (malik), a master for water distribution (mirab) and a religious teacher (mullah). Men would typically work on the fields, joined by women during harvest.[484] About 15% of the population are nomadic, locally called kochis.[258] When nomads pass villages they often buy supplies such as tea, wheat and kerosene from the villagers; villagers buy wool and milk from the nomads.[484]
Afghan clothing for both men and women typically consists of various forms of shalwar kameez, especially perahan tunban and khet partug. Women would normally wear a chador for head covering; some women, typically from highly conservative communities, wear the burqa, a full body covering. These were worn by some women of the Pashtun community well before Islam came to the region, but the Taliban enforced this dress on women when they were in power.[494] Another popular dress is the chapan which acts as a coat. The karakul is a hat made from the fur of a specific regional breed of sheep. It was favored by former kings of Afghanistan and became known to much of the world in the 21st century when it was constantly worn by President Hamid Karzai.[495] The pakol is another traditional hat originating from the far east of the country; it was popularly worn by the guerrilla leader Ahmad Shah Massoud.[496] The Mazari hat originates from northern Afghanistan.[497]
Kabul skyline, displaying both historical and contemporary buildings
The nation has a complex history that has survived either in its current cultures or in the form of various languages and monuments. Afghanistan contains many remnants from all ages, including Greek and Buddhist stupas, monasteries, monuments, temples, and Islamic minarets. Among the most well known are the Great Mosque of Herat, the Blue Mosque, the Minaret of Jam, the Chil Zena, the Qala-i Bost in Lashkargah, the ancient Greek city of Ai-Khanoum.[498] However, many of its historic monuments have been damaged in modern times due to the civil wars.[499] The two famous Buddhas of Bamiyan were destroyed by the Taliban, who regarded them as idolatrous. As there was no colonialism in the modern era in Afghanistan, European-style architecture is rare but does exist: the Victory Arch at Paghman and the Darul Aman Palace in Kabul were built in this style in the 1920s. Afghan architecture also ranges deep into India such as the city of Agra,[500] and the tomb of Sher Shah Suri, an Afghan Emperor of India.[501]
Carpet weaving is an ancient practice in Afghanistan, and many of these are still handmade by tribal and nomadic people today.[441] Carpets have been produced in the region for thousands of years and traditionally done by women.[502] Some crafters express their feelings through the designs of rugs; for example after the outbreak of the Soviet–Afghan War, "war rugs", a variant of Afghan rugs, were created with designs representing pain and misery caused by the conflict.[503] Every province has its own specific characteristics in making rugs.[504] In some of the Turkic-populated areas in the north-west, bride and wedding ceremony prices are driven by the bride's weaving skills.[505]
Pottery has been crafted in Afghanistan for millennia. The village of Istalif, north of Kabul, is in particular a major center, known for its unique turquoise and green pottery,[506] and their methods of crafting have remained the same for centuries.[507][508] Much of lapis lazuli stones were earthed in modern-day Afghanistan which were used in Chinese porcelain as cobalt blue, later used in ancient Mesopotamia and Turkey.[509]
The lands of Afghanistan have a long history of art, with the world's earliest known usage of oil painting found in cave murals in the country.[510][511] A notable art style that developed in Afghanistan and eastern Pakistan is Gandhara Art, produced by a fusion of Greco-Roman art and Buddhist art between the 1st and 7th centuries CE.[512] Later eras saw increased use of the Persian miniature style, with Kamaleddin Behzad of Herat being one of the most notable miniature artists of the Timurid and early Safavid periods. Since the 1900s, the nation began to use Western techniques in art. Abdul Ghafoor Breshna was a prominent Afghan painter and sketch artist from Kabul during the 20th century.
Classic Persian and Pashto poetry are a cherished part of Afghan culture. Poetry has always been one of the major educational pillars in the region, to the level that it has integrated itself into culture.[513] One of the poetic styles is called landay. A popular theme in Afghan folklore and mythology are Divs, monstrous creatures.[514] Thursdays are traditionally "poetry night" in the city of Herat when men, women and children gather and recite both ancient and modern poems.[515]
Three mystical authors are considered true national glories (although claimed with equal ardor by Iran), namely: Khwaja Abdullah Ansari of Herat, a great mystic and Sufi saint in the 11th century, Sanai of Ghazni, author of mystical poems in the 12th century, and, finally, Rumi of Balkh, in the 13th century, considered the greatest mystical poet of the Muslim world. The Afghan Pashto literature, although quantitatively remarkable and in great growth in the last century, has always had an essentially local meaning and importance, feeling the influence of both Persian literature and the contiguous literatures of India. Both main literatures, from the second half of the nineteenth century, have shown themselves to be sensitive to genres, movements and stylistic features imported from Europe.
Afghan classical music has close historical links with Indian classical music and use the same Hindustani terminology and theories like raga. Genres of this style of music include ghazal (poetic music) and instruments such as the Indian tabla, sitar and harmonium, and local instruments like zerbaghali, as well as dayereh and tanbur which are also known in Central Asia, the Caucasus and the Middle East. The rubab is the country's national instrument and precurses the Indian sarod instrument. Some of the famous artists of classical music include Ustad Sarahang and Sarban.[517]
Pop music developed in the 1950s through Radio Kabul and was influential in social change. During this time female artists also started appearing, at first Mermon Parwin.[517] Perhaps the most famous artist of this genre was Ahmad Zahir, who synthesized many genres and continues to be renowned for his voice and rich lyrics long after his death in 1979.[518][517] Other notable masters of traditional or popular Afghan music include Nashenas, Ubaidullah Jan, Mahwash, Ahmad Wali, Farhad Darya, and Naghma.[519]
Attan is the national dance of Afghanistan, a group dance popularly performed by Afghans of all backgrounds.[520] The dance is considered part of Afghan identity.[521]
Afghanistan has around 350 radio stations and over 200 television stations.[522]Radio Television Afghanistan, originating from 1925, is the state public broadcaster. Television programs began airing in the 1970s and today there are many private television channels such as TOLO and Shamshad TV. The first Afghan newspaper was published in 1873,[523] and there are hundreds of print outlets today.[522] By the 1920s, Radio Kabul was broadcasting local radio services.[524]Voice of America, BBC, and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) broadcast in both of Afghanistan's official languages on radio.[525] Press restrictions have been gradually relaxed and private media diversified since 2002, after more than two decades of tight controls.
Non, the most widely consumed bread in Afghanistan
Afghan cuisine is largely based upon the nation's chief crops, such as wheat, maize, barley and rice. Accompanying these staples are native fruits and vegetables as well as dairy products such as milk, yogurt, and whey. Kabuli palaw is the national dish of Afghanistan.[529] The nation's culinary specialties reflect its ethnic and geographic diversity.[530] Afghanistan is known for its high-quality pomegranates, grapes, and sweet melons.[531] Tea is a favorite drink among Afghans. A typical Afghan diet consists of naan, yogurt, rice, and meat.[484]
Holidays and festivals
Haft Mewa (Seven Fruit Syrup), popularly consumed during Nowruz
Afghanistan's official New Year starts with Nowruz, an ancient tradition that started as a Zoroastrian celebration in present-day Iran, and with which it shares the annual celebration along with several other countries. It occurs every year at the vernal equinox. In Afghanistan, Nowruz is typically celebrated with music and dance, as well as holding buzkashi tournaments.[532]
Yaldā, another nationally celebrated ancient tradition,[533] commemorates the ancient goddess Mithra and marks the longest night of the year on the eve of the winter solstice (čelle ye zemestān; usually falling on 20 or 21 December),[534][535] during which families gather together to recite poetry and eat fruit.[536][537]
As a predominantly Muslim country, Islamic events and festivals such as Ramadan, Eid al-Fitr and Ashura are widely celebrated annually in Afghanistan. The Sikh festival of Vaisakhi is celebrated by the Sikh community[538] and the Hindu festival Diwali by the Hindu community.[539]
The traditional and the national sport of Afghanistan is buzkashi, particularly popular in the north.[551] It is similar to polo, played by horsemen in two teams, each trying to grab and hold a goat carcass.[552] The Afghan Hound (a type of running dog) originated in Afghanistan and was used in wolf hunting.[553]
↑ The last census in Afghanistan was conducted in 1979, and was itself incomplete. Due to the ongoing conflict in the country, no official census has been conducted since.[4]
↑ Other demonyms that have been used are Afghani,[9] Afghanese and Afghanistani (see Afghans for further details)[10]
↑ Afghanistan is a pure autocracy, with all law ultimately originating from the supreme leader. Consensus rule was initially used among the Taliban, but was phased out as the supreme leader monopolized control in the months following the 2021 return to power.[15][16][17] There is an advisory Leadership Council, however its role is in question as the supreme leader has not convened it for many months (as of March2023),[update] and increasingly rules by decree.[18]
↑ The Government of India regards Afghanistan as a bordering country, as it considers all of Kashmir to be part of India. However, this is disputed, and the region bordering Afghanistan is administered by Pakistan as Gilgit-Baltistan.[26]
Related Research Articles
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Madadi, Sayed (6 September 2022). "Dysfunctional centralization and growing fragility under Taliban rule". Middle East Institute. Archived from the original on 28 November 2022. Retrieved 28 November 2022. In other words, the centralized political and governance institutions of the former republic were unaccountable enough that they now comfortably accommodate the totalitarian objectives of the Taliban without giving the people any chance to resist peacefully.
Sadr, Omar (23 March 2022). "Afghanistan's Public Intellectuals Fail to Denounce the Taliban". Fair Observer. Archived from the original on 23 March 2022. Retrieved 28 November 2022. The Taliban government currently installed in Afghanistan is not simply another dictatorship. By all standards, it is a totalitarian regime.
↑ Oxford Analytica (10 March 2023). "Senior Afghan Taliban figures move to curb leader". Expert Briefings. Emerald Expert Briefings. oxan–db (oxan–db). doi:10.1108/OXAN-DB276639. [Akhundzada] has not convened the Taliban's Leadership Council (a 'politburo' of top leaders and commanders) for several months. Instead, he relies on the narrower Kandahar Council of Clerics for legal advice.
↑ Griffin, Luke (14 January 2002). "The Pre-Islamic Period". Afghanistan Country Study. Illinois Institute of Technology. Archived from the original on 3 November 2001. Retrieved 14 October 2010.
"The name Afghan has evidently been derived from Asvakan, the Assakenoi of Arrian... " (Megasthenes and Arrian, p 180. See also: Alexander's Invasion of India, p 38; J.W. McCrindle).
"Even the name Afghan is Aryan being derived from Asvakayana, an important clan of the Asvakas or horsemen who must have derived this title from their handling of celebrated breeds of horses" (See: Imprints of Indian Thought and Culture Abroad, p 124, Vivekananda Kendra Prakashan).
Cf: "Their name (Afghan) means "cavalier" being derived from the Sanskrit, Asva, or Asvaka, a horse, and shows that their country must have been noted in ancient times, as it is at the present day, for its superior breed of horses. Asvaka was an important tribe settled north to Kabul river, which offered a gallant resistance but ineffectual resistance to the arms of Alexander." (Scottish Geographical Magazine, 1999, p. 275, Royal Scottish Geographical Society)
"Afghans are Assakani of the Greeks; this word being the SanskritAshvaka meaning 'horsemen'." (Sva, 1915, p. 113, Christopher Molesworth Birdwood)
Cf: "The name represents Sanskrit Asvaka in the sense of a cavalier, and this reappears scarcely modified in the Assakani or Assakeni of the historians of the expedition of Alexander" (Hobson-Jobson: A Glossary of Colloquial Anglo-Indian words and phrases, and of kindred terms, etymological. Henry Yule, A. D. Burnell).
1 2 Gnoli, Gherado (1989). The Idea of Iran, an Essay on its Origin. Istituto italiano per il Medio ed Estremo Oriente. p.133. ... he would have drawn inspiration from a ireligious policy which intended to counteract the Median Magi's influence and transfer the 'Avesta-Schule' from Arachosia to Persia: thus the Avesta would have arrived in Persia through Arachosia in the 6th century B.C. [...] Although ... Arachosia would have been only a second fatherland for Zoroastrianism, a significant role should still be attributed to this south-eastern region in the history of the Zoroastrian tradition.
1 2 Gnoli, Gherado (1989). The Idea of Iran, an essay on its Origin. Istituto italiano per il Medio ed Estremo Oriente. p.133. linguistic data [...] prove the presence of the Zoroastrian tradition in Arachosia both in the Achaemenian age, in the last quarter of the 6th century, and in the Seleucid age.
↑ Weber, Olivier; Unesco (2002). Eternal Afghanistan. Chêne. ISBN978-92-3-103850-1. Gradually there emerged a fabulous syncretism between the Hellenistic world and the Buddhist universe
↑ Grenet, Grenet (2016). Zoroastriansm among the Kushans.
1 2 Allen, Charles (5 November 2015). The Search For Shangri-La: A Journey into Tibetan History. Little, Brown Book Group. ISBN978-0-349-14218-0. With Aurmuzd, Sroshard, Narasa and Mihr, we are on safer ground because all are Zoroastrian deities: Aurmuzd is the supreme god of light, Ahura Mazda; and Mihr, the sun god, is linked with the Iranian Mithra. Exactly the same non-Buddhist[...]
↑ Ende, Werner; Steinbach, Udo (15 April 2010). Islam in the World Today: A Handbook of Politics, Religion, Culture, and Society. Cornell University Press. p.257. ISBN9780801464898. At the time of the first Muslim advances, numerous local natural religions were competing with Buddhism, Zoroastrianism, and Hinduism in the territory of modern Afghanistan.
↑ Adrych, Philippa; coins), Robert Bracey (Writer on; Dalglish, Dominic; Lenk, Stefanie; Wood, Rachel (2017). Images of Mithra. Oxford University Press. ISBN978-0-19-879253-6. The Rabatak inscription includes Miiro amongst a list of gods: Nana, Ahura Mazda, and Narasa. All of these gods likely had images dedicated at the Bagolaggo, presumably alongside statues of Kanishka
↑ Allen, Charles (5 November 2015). The Search For Shangri-La: A Journey into Tibetan History. Little, Brown Book Group. ISBN978-0-349-14218-0. The two most important deities are goddesses: one is the lady Nana', daughter of the moon god and sister of the sun god, the Kushan form of Anahita, Zoroastrian goddess of fertility
↑ "Khurasan". The Encyclopaedia of Islam. Brill. 2009. p.55. Archived from the original on 25 February 2024. Retrieved 20 June 2015. In pre-Islamic and early Islamic times, the term "Khurassan" frequently had a much wider denotation, covering also parts of what are now Soviet Central Asia and Afghanistan
↑ Nicosia, Francis R. (1997). "'Drang Nach Osten' Continued? Germany and Afghanistan during the Weimar Republic". Journal of Contemporary History. 32 (2): 235–257. doi:10.1177/002200949703200207. JSTOR261243. S2CID160565967.
↑ Kakar, Mohammed (3 March 1997). The Soviet Invasion and the Afghan Response, 1979–1982. University of California Press. ISBN9780520208933. Archived from the original on 6 January 2017. Retrieved 7 January 2017. The Afghans are among the latest victims of genocide by a superpower. Large numbers of Afghans were killed to suppress resistance to the army of the Soviet Union, which wished to vindicate its client regime and realize its goal in Afghanistan.
↑ Klass, Rosanne (1994). The Widening Circle of Genocide. Transaction Publishers. p.129. ISBN978-1-4128-3965-5. During the intervening fourteen years of Communist rule, an estimated 1.5 to 2 million Afghan civilians were killed by Soviet forces and their proxies- the four Communist regimes in Kabul, and the East Germans, Bulgarians, Czechs, Cubans, Palestinians, Indians and others who assisted them. These were not battle casualties or the unavoidable civilian victims of warfare. Soviet and local Communist forces seldom attacked the scattered guerilla bands of the Afghan Resistance except, in a few strategic locales like the Panjsher valley. Instead they deliberately targeted the civilian population, primarily in the rural areas.
↑ Reisman, W. Michael; Norchi, Charles H. "Genocide and the Soviet Occupation of Afghanistan"(PDF). Archived(PDF) from the original on 26 October 2016. Retrieved 7 January 2017. According to widely reported accounts, substantial programmes of depopulation have been conducted in these Afghan provinces: Ghazni, Nagarhar, Lagham, Qandahar, Zabul, Badakhshan, Lowgar, Paktia, Paktika and Kunar...There is considerable evidence that genocide has been committed against the Afghan people by the combined forces of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan and the Soviet Union.
↑ "Afghanistan". publishing.cdlib.org. Archived from the original on 21 January 2023. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
↑ Saikal, Amin (13 November 2004). Modern Afghanistan: A History of Struggle and Survival (2006 1sted.). I.B. Tauris & Co Ltd., London New York. p.352. ISBN978-1-85043-437-5.
↑ GUTMAN, Roy (2008): How We Missed the Story: Osama bin Laden, the Taliban and the Hijacking of Afghanistan, Endowment of the United States Institute of Peace, 1st ed., Washington D.C.
↑ "Afghan Futures: A National Public Opinion Survey"(PDF). Afghan Center for Socio-economic and Opinion Research. 29 January 2015. p.4. Archived(PDF) from the original on 29 March 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2017. Seventy-seven percent support the presence of U.S. forces; 67 percent say the same of NATO/ISAF forces more generally. Despite the country's travails, eight in 10 say it was a good thing for the United States to oust the Taliban in 2001. And much more blame either the Taliban or al Qaeda for the country's violence, 53 percent, than blame the United States, 12 percent. The latter is about half what it was in 2012, coinciding with a sharp reduction in the U.S. deployment.
↑ "Operations". The National Resistance Front: Fighting for a Free Afghanistan. National Resistance Front of Afghanistan. Archived from the original on 6 September 2021. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
↑ "Can the Taliban Tackle Corruption in Afghanistan?". VOA. 31 January 2023. Archived from the original on 16 August 2023. Retrieved 16 August 2023. Taliban-ruled Afghanistan is ranked 150th, a remarkable status upgrade from its 174th ranking in 2021. In 2011, at the height of U.S. military and developmental engagement in Afghanistan, the country was ranked 180th, next to North Korea and Somalia.
↑ Tan, Anjelica (18 February 2020). "A new strategy for Central Asia". The Hill. Archived from the original on 16 August 2021. Retrieved 28 March 2020. , as Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has noted, Afghanistan is itself a Central Asian country.
↑ "Earthquake Hazards". USGS Projects in Afghanistan. US Geological Survey. 1 August 2011. Archived from the original on 4 October 2011. Retrieved 13 October 2011.
↑ "EU To Impose Ban on Afghan Planes". Airwise News. 22 November 2010. Archived from the original on 24 May 2013. Retrieved 28 May 2019. Kabul-based Safi is the country's No. 2 airline after national carrier Ariana Afghan Airlines
↑ "Khaf-Herat railroad to be launched in Iran soon". 7 August 2018. Archived from the original on 28 September 2018. Retrieved 27 September 2018. "Iran-Afghanistan railway networks through Khaf-Herat Railroad will be completed in the next few months," Yazdani said, according to Mehr news agency on 3 August
↑ "Khaf-Herat railway". RaillyNews | Dailly Railway News in English. 10 December 2013. Archived from the original on 20 December 2017. Retrieved 1 June 2014.
↑ Porter, Valerie; Alderson, Lawrence; Hall, Stephen J.G.; Sponenberg, D. Phillip (9 March 2016). Mason's World Encyclopedia of Livestock Breeds and Breeding, 2 Volume Pack. p.23. ISBN9781845934668. [Donkeys] are the primary means of transportation in the countryside (along with bicycles) and are sometimes described as the 'Jeeps' of Afghanistan — or even as the country's 'helicopters'.
↑ "Article Sixteen of the 2004 Constitution of Afghanistan". 2004. Archived from the original on 28 October 2013. Retrieved 13 June 2012. Pashto and Dari are the official languages of the state. Uzbek, Turkmen, Baluchi, Pashai, Nuristani and Pamiri are – in addition to Pashto and Dari – the third official language in areas where the majority speaks them
↑ The Encyc. Iranica makes clear in the article on Afghanistan— Ethnography that "The term Farsiwan also has the regional forms Parsiwan and Parsiban. In religion they are Imami Shia. In the literature they are often mistakenly referred to as Tajik." Dupree, Louis (1982) "Afghanistan: (iv.) Ethnography", in Encyclopædia Iranica Online Edition 2006.
↑ Gul, Ayaz (20 April 2019). "Pakistan-funded Afghan Hospital Begins Operations". VOA News. Archived from the original on 23 April 2019. Retrieved 28 May 2019. It opens a new chapter in the friendship of the two countries... This is the second-largest hospital [in Afghanistan] built with your support that will serve the needy," Feroz told the gathering.
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41,128,771 [20] (37th)
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