Ahmad Shāh Durrānī, also known as Ahmad Shāh Abdālī, was the first Shah and founder of the Durrani Empire, and is often regarded as the founder of modern Afghanistan.
The Durrani Empire, colloquially known as the Afghan Empire, or the Sadozai Kingdom, was an Afghan empire founded by the Durrani tribe of Pashtuns under Ahmad Shah Durrani in 1747, which spanned parts of Central Asia, the Iranian plateau, and the Indian subcontinent. At its peak, it ruled over present-day Afghanistan, much of Pakistan, parts of northeastern and southeastern Iran, eastern Turkmenistan, and northwestern India. Next to the Ottoman Empire, the Durrani Empire is considered to be among the most significant Islamic empire of the second half of the 18th century.
Jalalabad is the fifth-largest city of Afghanistan. It has a population of about 356,274, and serves as the capital of Nangarhar Province in the eastern part of the country, about 130 kilometres (80 mi) from the capital Kabul. Jalalabad is located at the junction of the Kabul River and the Kunar River in a plateau to the south of the Hindu Kush mountains. It is linked by the Kabul-Jalalabad Road to the west and Peshawar in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, to the east through Torkham and the Khyber Pass.
Pashtunistan or Pakhtunistan is a historical region on the crossroads of Central and South Asia, located on the Iranian Plateau, inhabited by the Pashtun people of southern and eastern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan, wherein Pashtun culture, the Pashto language, and identity have been based. Alternative names historically used for the region include Pashtūnkhwā or Pakhtūnkhwā (پښتونخوا), Pathānistān, or simply the Pashtun Belt.
Kandahār is one of the thirty four provinces of Afghanistan, located in the southern part of the country, sharing a border with Pakistan, to the south. It is surrounded by Helmand in the west, Uruzgan in the north and Zabul Province in the east. Its capital is the city of Kandahar, which is Afghanistan's second largest city, which is located on the Arghandab River. The greater region surrounding the province is called Loy Kandahar. The Emir of Afghanistan sends orders to Kabul from Kandahar making it the de facto capital of Afghanistan, although the main government body operates in Kabul. All meetings with the Emir take place in Kandahar, meetings excluding the Emir are in Kabul.
Bismillah Khan Mohammadi, or Bismillah Khan, is an Afghan politician who served as the defense minister of Afghanistan from 2012 to 2015 and for two months in 2021. From 2002 to 2010, he served as Chief of Staff of the Afghan National Army, and from 2010 to 2012 he held the post of Interior Minister of Afghanistan. He has an anti-Taliban background and once served as a senior commander under Ahmad Shah Massoud. Despite the fall of Kabul to the Taliban in August 2021, Mohammadi claims to remain the minister of defense as part of the government of the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan.
Sibi is a city situated in the Balochistan province of Pakistan. The city serves as the administrative headquarters of the district and tehsil of the same name.
Sitara-e-Jurat is the third highest military award of Pakistan. It was established in 1957 after Pakistan became a republic; however, it was instituted retrospectively back to 1947. It is awarded for gallantry or distinguished service in combat; and can be bestowed upon officers, junior commissioned officers, petty officers, warrant officers, soldiers, sailors, airmen, and equivalents in the Pakistan Army, Navy, Air Force, and various paramilitary forces under federal control, such as the Frontier Corps, the Frontier Constabulary, and the Pakistan Rangers. It may be considered to be roughly equivalent to the Military Cross and the Silver Star.
Graham Ragsdale is a former soldier of the Canadian Forces. He commanded the sniper team from the 3rd Battalion Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry attached to the United States Army 187th Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division during Operation Anaconda in the Shah-i-kot Valley, Paktia Province, Afghanistan in March 2002. He was awarded the United States Bronze Star Medal with "V" device for his actions in combat and was Mentioned in Despatches by the Canadian Forces.
Asmar is a river valley and a town in the northeastern Kunar province of Afghanistan, which serves as the district center of Bar Kunar district. The Kunar River flows in the valley.
Pashtun nationalism is an ideology that claims that the Pashtuns form a distinct nation and that they should always be united to preserve their culture and homeland. In Afghanistan, those who advocate Pashtun nationalism favour the idea of a "Greater Afghanistan", which includes Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and be ruled directly under Pashtun principles.
Egon Ramms is a retired German general who held numerous international commands. Ramms is a father of two.
Feroze Jung III or Nizam Shahabuddin Muhammad Feroz Khan Siddiqi Bayafandi also known by his sobriquet Imad-ul-Mulk, was the grand vizier of the Mughal Empire.
Field Marshal Sardar Shah Wali Khan, also known as Field Marshal Sardar Shah Wali Khan Ghazi, was a political and military figure in Afghanistan. He was a member of the Musahiban and an uncle of both King Zahir and President Mohammed Daoud Khan. He was a full brother of Prime Minister Shah Mahmud Khan, King Mohammad Nadir Shah and paternal half-brother of Prime Minister Mohammad Hashim Khan.
Mir Masjidi Khan is one of many celebrated Afghan resistance leaders from Shamali Plain who opposed the installation of Shuja Shah Durrani as Emir of Afghanistan by the Government of British India during the First Anglo-Afghan War. He kept up a fierce struggle against the occupation forces in and around Kabul and Northern Afghanistan, until his death.
Ahmad Shah Durrani, the founder of the Durrani Empire, invaded Indian subcontinent a total of eight times between 1748 and 1767, following the collapse of Mughal Empire in the mid-18th century. His objectives were met through the raids and deepened the political crisis in India.
The State Order of Ghazi Amir Amanullah Khan was the highest civilian award of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. It was instituted in 2006 and bestowed by the Government of Afghanistan to Afghan and foreign nationals in recognition of their services to Afghanistan. The award was named for Ghazi Amanullah Khan, the Sovereign of the Kingdom of Afghanistan from 1919 to 1929. The citation on the reverse of the medal stated, "Nishan-e Dawlati Ghazi Amir Amanullah Khan", meaning "State Order of Ghazi Amir Amanullah Khan." The award was originally created during the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan.
Mir Bacha Khan Kohdamani originally known as Mir Bahauddin was one of the most well known Tajik chiefs during the Anglo-Afghan wars. He led the Tajiks of Kohistan in the Second Anglo-Afghan War. He was the son of Mir Darwish khan, another Tajik chief, who also fought against the British in the First Anglo-Afghan War.
