The Hindu Kush is an 800-kilometre-long (500 mi) mountain range in Central and South Asia to the west of the Himalayas. It stretches from central and western Afghanistan into northwestern Pakistan and far southeastern Tajikistan. The range forms the western section of the Hindu Kush Himalayan Region (HKH); to the north, near its northeastern end, the Hindu Kush buttresses the Pamir Mountains near the point where the borders of China, Pakistan and Afghanistan meet, after which it runs southwest through Pakistan and into Afghanistan near their border. The eastern end of the Hindu Kush in the north merges with the Karakoram Range. Towards its southern end, it connects with the Spin Ghar Range near the Kabul River. It divides the valley of the Amu Darya to the north from the Indus River valley to the south. The range has numerous high snow-capped peaks, with the highest point being Tirich Mir or Terichmir at 7,708 metres (25,289 ft) in the Chitral District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.
The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, also referred to as the First Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, was an Islamic state established in September 1996, when the Taliban began their governance of Afghanistan after the fall of Kabul. At its peak, the Taliban government controlled approximately 90% of the country, while remaining regions in the northeast were held by the Northern Alliance, which maintained broad international recognition as a continuation of the Islamic State of Afghanistan.
Dadullah was the Taliban's senior military commander in Afghanistan until his death in 2007. He was also known as Maulavi or Mullah Dadullah Akhund. He also earned the nickname of Lang, meaning "lame", because of a leg he lost during fighting.
Sher Mohammed Akhundzada is a tribal leader who was the Governor of Helmand in Afghanistan from 2001 to 2005.
Garmsir District is located in the southern part of Helmand Province, Afghanistan. The district is large, but all the villages are along the Helmand River. The rest is a desert. The district capital, Garmsir, is located in the northwestern part of the district on the east bank of Helmand River.
Garmsir is the center of Garmsir District in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. It is situated on the eastern bank of the Helmand River on 31.1167°N 64.2000°E at 714 m altitude and 63 km southwest of Lashkargah. The major road at Garmsir is Route 605. The hospital is called Hazar Juft Comprehensive Health Clinic.
The two branches of the Barakzai dynasty ruled modern day Afghanistan from 1823 to 1973 when the monarchy ended under Musahiban Mohammed Zahir Shah. The Barakzai dynasty was established by Dost Mohammad Khan after the Durrani dynasty of Ahmad Shah Durrani was removed from power.
The Helmand province campaign was a series of military operations conducted by the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) forces against Taliban insurgents and other local groups in the Helmand Province of Afghanistan. Their objective was to control a province that was known to be a Taliban stronghold, and a center of opium production. None of the ISAF's intended strategic and political objectives were achieved in the long term.
The War in Afghanistan was an armed conflict in Afghanistan from 2001 to 2021. It began when an international military coalition led by the United States launched an invasion of Afghanistan, subsequently toppling the Taliban-ruled Islamic Emirate and establishing the internationally recognized Islamic Republic three years later. The 20-year-long conflict ultimately ended with the 2021 Taliban offensive, which overthrew the Islamic Republic and subsequently re-established the Islamic Emirate. It was the longest war in the military history of the United States, surpassing the length of the Vietnam War (1955–1975) by approximately six months.
The Helmand Provincial Reconstruction Team (HPRT) was established in September 2004. It was led by the US until 1 May 2006, when this responsibility was handed to the UK. HPRT ceased operations in Lashkar Gah on 27 December 2013.
Mullah Mohammad Nasim Akhundzada was a mujahideen commander and Pashtun warlord who operated in Helmand Province, Afghanistan during the 1980s. Based out of Musa Qala in northern Helmand, Nasim was from the Alizai tribe. He issued a fatwa legalizing poppy cultivation in 1981. During the 1980s he gradually consolidated power over most of Helmand, eliminating other mujahideen factions. He was assassinated in March 1990 in Pakistan. His nephew Sher Mohammad Akhundzada was the governor of Helmand until 2005 and is an important Afghan politician.
Bārakzai is the name of a Pashtun tribe from present-day, Kandahar, Afghanistan. '"Barakzai" is a common name among the Pashtuns and it means "son of Barak" in Pashto. According to the Encyclopædia Iranica, "In the detailed Pashtun genealogies there are no fewer than seven instances of the ethnic name Bārakzī, at very different levels of tribal segmentation. Six of them designate simple lineages within six different tribes located in the Solaymān mountains or adjacent lands... The seventh instance, on the other hand, designates one of the most important Pashtun tribes in numbers and historic role, part of the Zīrak branch of the Dorrānay confederation.
Bahrāmcha (Balochi بھرام چاه}}) is the center of Dishu District in the southern part of Helmand Province, Afghanistan.
The Alizai rebellion of 1923 was a rebellion by the Alizai tribe in the region of Zamindawar, in modern-day Helmand Province of the Emirate of Afghanistan, which took place in 1923. The causes laid in opposition to the reforms of Amanullah Khan, namely in regards to conscription and taxation. The rebellion lasted 6 months, largely due to the fact that none of the conscripted battalions in the south were willing to fight the Alizai. Ultimately, the rebellion was defeated with troops from Herat, who executed rebel leaders and deported groups of Zamindawaris to Afghan Turkestan.
Carter Malkasian is a historian and former adviser to American military commanders in Afghanistan.
Khalil-ur-Rahman Haqqani, also known as Khalil-ur-Rehman Haqqani, Khalil al-Rahman Haqqani, Khaleel Haqqani and Khalil Ahmad Haqqani, is the current Afghan Minister of Refugees and a prominent leader of the Haqqani network.
The American War in Afghanistan: A History is a nonfiction historical account of the United States war in Afghanistan between 2001 and 2020. It was written by Carter Malkasian and published in 2021 by Oxford University Press. In 2022 the author received the Lionel Gelber Prize for this book.
