Afghanistan

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Coordinates: 34°31′N 69°11′E / 34.517°N 69.183°E / 34.517; 69.183
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For other uses, see Afghanistan (disambiguation).
"Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan" redirects here. For the group, see Taliban. For the state that existed from 1996 to 2001, see Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (1996–2001).

Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan
  • د افغانستان اسلامي امارت (
    Dari
    )
    Imārat-i Islāmī-yi Afğānistān
Motto: لا إله إلا الله، محمد رسول الله
Lā ʾilāha ʾillā llāh, Muhammadun rasūlu llāh
"There is no god but
theocratic Islamic emirate[14]
Hibatullah Akhundzada
Hasan Akhund (acting)
Abdul Hakim Haqqani
LegislatureNone
27 May 1863
19 August 1919
• Kingdom
9 June 1926
• Republic
17 July 1973
27–28 April 1978
28 April 1992
27 September 1996
26 January 2004
15 August 2021
Afghanistan Time)
DST is not observed[24]
Drives onRight
ISO 3166 codeAF
Internet TLD.af

Afghanistan,[d] officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,[e] is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the east and south,[f] Iran to the west, Turkmenistan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, Tajikistan to the northeast, and China to the northeast and east. Occupying 652,864 square kilometers (252,072 sq mi) of land, the country is predominantly mountainous with plains in the north and the southwest, which are separated by the Hindu Kush mountain range. Kabul is the country's capital and largest city. Afghanistan's population is about 35 million.[20]

Zahir Shah was overthrown in 1973, following which the Republic of Afghanistan
was established.

Since the late 1970s, Afghanistan's history has been dominated by extensive warfare, including

Soviet Union to invade Afghanistan in 1979. Mujahideen fought against the Soviets in the Soviet–Afghan War and continued fighting among themselves following the Soviets' withdrawal in 1989. The Taliban controlled most of the country by 1996, but their Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan received little international recognition before its overthrow in the 2001 US invasion of Afghanistan. The Taliban returned to power in 2021 after capturing Kabul, ending the 2001–2021 war.[34] As of June 2024, the Taliban government remains internationally unrecognized
.

Afghanistan is rich in natural resources, including

least developed countries, ranking 182nd on the Human Development Index. Afghanistan's gross domestic product (GDP) is $81 billion by purchasing power parity and $20.1 billion by nominal values. Per capita, its GDP is among the lowest of any country as of 2020
.

Etymology

Main article: Name of Afghanistan

Some scholars suggest that the

aśva, the Sanskrit and Avestan words for "horse").[39]

Historically, the ethnonym Afghān was used to refer to ethnic

Encyclopedia of Islam:[42]

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.

The term "Afghanistan" was officially used in 1855, when the British recognized Dost Mohammad Khan as king of Afghanistan.[43]

History

Main article: History of Afghanistan

Prehistory and antiquity

Main article: Ancient history of Afghanistan
See also: Hindu and Buddhist heritage of Afghanistan
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

Oxus River at Shortugai in northern Afghanistan.[46][47][48]

After 2000 BCE successive waves of semi-nomadic people from Central Asia began moving south into Afghanistan; among them were many

Darius I of Persia mentions the Kabul Valley in a list of the 29 countries that he had conquered.[50] 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".[51][52][53]

Scythian belt depicting Dionysus, from Tillya Tepe in the ancient region of Bactria

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.[54][55]
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.[56] 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[57] mainly from the Badakhshan region.

During the first century BCE, the

Buddhist culture.[59][60]

Medieval period

Main articles:
Mongol invasion of Central Asia, and Ghaznavid campaigns in India
The Ghurids originated from Ghor Province in central Afghanistan.

Samanids extended their Islamic influence south of the Hindu Kush. The Ghaznavids rose to power in the 10th century.[70][71][72]

By the 11th century,

Khwarazmian dynasty in 1215.[76]

Mongol invasions and conquests

In 1219 CE,

Bamyan.[77] The destruction caused by the Mongols forced many locals to return to an agrarian rural society.[78] 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[79] served as the focal point of the Timurid Renaissance, whose glory matched Florence of the Italian Renaissance as the center of a cultural rebirth.[80][81]

In the early 16th century

Mughals ruled parts of the territory.[84] 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.[85][86][87][88]

Hotak dynasty

Main article: Hotak dynasty
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,

Gurgin Khan, the Georgian governor of Kandahar under the Safavids, and established his own kingdom.[89] 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.[89] 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.[90][91]

Durrani Empire

Main articles: Durrani Empire and Ahmad Shah Durrani

After the death of Nader Shah in 1747,

Nishapur
once again, and captured it.

Ahmad Shah

Maratha
expansion.

Portrait of Ahmad Shah Durrani c. 1757

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.[97] 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[98] 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,[99] 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.[100]

Shah Shuja Durrani on 13 July 1803.[103] Shah Shuja attempted to consolidate the Durrani Realm but was deposed by his brother at the Battle of Nimla (1809).[104] Mahmud Shah Durrani defeated Shah Shuja and forced him to flee, usurping the throne again. His second reign began on 3 May 1809.[105]

Barakzai dynasty and British wars

Further information:
Anglo-Afghan Wars, Durand Line, and Afghan Civil War (1928–1929)
Emirate of Herat
seen as well.

By the early 19th century, the Afghan empire was under threat from the

Principality of Qandahar, Emirate of Herat, Khanate of Qunduz, Maimana Khanate, and numerous other warring polities. The most prominent state was the Emirate of Kabul, ruled by Dost Mohammad Khan.[106][107]

With the collapse of the Durrani Empire, and the exile of the

The Great Game".[109]

Afghan tribesmen in 1841, painted by British officer James Rattray

In 1839 a

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.[112]

Dost Mohammad died in June 1863, a few weeks after his successful

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.[116] 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?

— Abdur Rahman Khan, the "Iron Amir", in 1900[117][118]

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.[119]

King of Afghanistan
in June 1926.

After the end of the Third Anglo-Afghan War and the signing of the

constitution, which made elementary education compulsory. Slavery was abolished in 1923.[122] King Amanullah's wife, Queen Soraya, was an important figure during this period in the fight for woman's education and against their oppression.[123]

Some of the reforms, such as the abolition of the traditional

Mohammed Nadir Shah, Amanullah's cousin, defeated and killed Kalakani in October 1929, and was declared King Nadir Shah.[125] He abandoned the reforms of King Amanullah in favor of a more gradual approach to modernization, but was assassinated in 1933 by Abdul Khaliq.[126]

Mohammed Zahir Shah succeeded to the throne and reigned as king from 1933 to 1973. During the

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.[127] The country built close relationships with the Axis powers, with Nazi Germany having the largest share in Afghan development at the time.[128]

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

Pashtun nationalist who sought the creation of a Pashtunistan, leading to highly tense relations with Pakistan.[129] 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.[127]

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

bloodless coup and became the first president of Afghanistan
, abolishing the monarchy.

Democratic Republic and Soviet war

Main articles: Democratic Republic of Afghanistan, Soviet–Afghan War, and Afghan Civil War (1989–1992)
Further information: History of Afghanistan (1978–1992)
Soviet troops in Gardez, Afghanistan in 1987

In April 1978, the communist

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),[132] and the Soviet Union sent thousands of military advisers to support the PDPA regime.[133] Meanwhile, there was increasingly hostile friction between the competing factions of the PDPA – the dominant Khalq and the more moderate Parcham.[134]

In October 1979, PDPA General Secretary Taraki was assassinated in an internal coup orchestrated by then-prime minister

civil war ensued until the communist regime under People's Democratic Party leader Mohammad Najibullah collapsed in 1992.[148][149][150]

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.

warlords.[152]

Post–Cold War conflict

See also: Afghan Civil War (1992–1996), Afghan Civil War (1996–2001), Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (1996–2001), and Northern Alliance
Development of the civil war from 1992 to late 2001

Another civil war broke out after the

women.[164][165] 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.[166][167][168][169][170][171][excessive citations
]

After the fall of Kabul to the Taliban, Ahmad Shah Massoud and Abdul Rashid Dostum formed the Northern Alliance, later joined by others, to resist the Taliban. Dostum's forces were defeated by the Taliban during the Battles of Mazar-i-Sharif in 1997 and 1998; Pakistan's Chief of Army Staff, Pervez Musharraf, began sending thousands of Pakistanis to help the Taliban defeat the Northern Alliance.[172][160][173][174][175][excessive citations] By 2000, the Northern Alliance only controlled 10% of territory, cornered in the northeast. On 9 September 2001, Massoud was assassinated by two Arab suicide attackers in Panjshir Valley. Around 400,000 Afghans died in internal conflicts between 1990 and 2001.[176]

US invasion and Islamic Republic

Further information: War in Afghanistan (2001–2021), Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Taliban insurgency, and Fall of Kabul (2021)

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.[177][178][179] The majority of Afghans supported the American invasion.[180][181] 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.[182]

US troops and Chinooks in Afghanistan, 2008

In December 2001, after the Taliban government was overthrown, the

Karzai administration and provide basic security.[183][184] By this time, after two decades of war as well as an acute famine at the time, Afghanistan had one of the highest infant and child mortality rates in the world, the lowest life expectancy, much of the population were hungry,[185][186][187] and infrastructure was in ruins.[188] Many foreign donors started providing aid and assistance to rebuild the war-torn country.[189][190] As coalition troops entered Afghanistan to help the rebuilding process,[191][192] the Taliban began an insurgency to regain control. Afghanistan remained one of the poorest countries in the world because of a lack of foreign investment, government corruption, and the Taliban insurgency.[193][194]

The Afghan government was able to build some democratic structures, adopting a constitution in 2004 with the name

Operation Resolute Support was formed the same day as a successor to ISAF.[201][202] Thousands of NATO troops remained in the country to train and advise Afghan government forces[203] and continue their fight against the Taliban.[204] 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.[205]

A map of Afghanistan showing the 2021 Taliban offensive

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);[206] 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.[207]

Second Taliban era

Further information: Aftermath of the Afghanistan War (2001–2021)

NATO Secretary General

Panjshir province, with resistance fighters retreating to the mountains.[217] Clashes in the valley ceased mid-September.[218]

According to the Costs of War Project, 176,000 people were killed in the conflict, including 46,319 civilians, between 2001 and 2021.[219] According to the Uppsala Conflict Data Program, at least 212,191 people were killed in the conflict.[220] Though the state of war in the country ended in 2021, armed conflict persists in some regions[221][222][223] amid fighting between the Taliban and the local branch of the Islamic State, as well as an anti-Taliban Republican insurgency.[224]

Taliban fighters in Kabul on a captured Humvee following the 2021 fall of Kabul

The Taliban government is led by

supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada[225] and acting prime minister Hasan Akhund, who took office on 7 September 2021.[226][227] Akhund is one of the four founders of the Taliban[228] and was a deputy prime minister of the previous emirate; his appointment was seen as a compromise between moderates and hardliners.[229] A new, all-male cabinet was formed, which included Abdul Hakim Haqqani as minister of justice.[230][231] On 20 September 2021, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres received a letter from acting minister of foreign affairs Amir Khan Muttaqi to formally claim Afghanistan's seat as a member state for their official spokesman in Doha, Suhail Shaheen. The United Nations did not recognize the previous Taliban government and chose to work with the then government-in-exile instead.[232]

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.[233][234] More than half of Afghanistan's 39 million people faced an acute food shortage in October 2021.[235] Human Rights Watch reported on 11 November 2021 that Afghanistan was facing widespread famine due to an economic and banking crisis.[236]

The Taliban have significantly tackled corruption, improving on the corruption perceptions index from 174th to 150th best out of 180 countries from 2021 to 2022,[237] but dropping to 162th in 2023.[238] The Taliban have also reportedly reduced bribery and extortion in public service areas.[237]

At the same time, the human rights situation in the country has deteriorated.[239] Following the 2001 invasion, more than 5.7 million refugees returned to Afghanistan;[240] however, in 2021, 2.6 million 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 2024 United Nations Climate Change Conference, 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]

Geography

Main article: Geography of Afghanistan

Afghanistan is located in Southern-Central Asia.

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.

At over 652,864 km2 (252,072 sq mi),

Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region of Tajikistan; Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China; and the Gilgit-Baltistan territory, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and Balochistan province of Pakistan.[257]

Floodplain cultivation in the Wakhan Corridor, Pamir Mountains

The geography in Afghanistan is varied, but is mostly mountainous and rugged, with some unusual mountain ridges accompanied by plateaus and river basins.

Paktika provinces (see East Afghan montane conifer forests),[260] and tundra in the northeast. The country's highest point is Noshaq, at 7,492 m (24,580 ft) above sea level.[261] The lowest point lies in Jowzjan Province
along the Amu River bank, at 258 m (846 ft) above sea level.

The mountainous topography of Afghanistan

Despite having numerous rivers and

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$2 billion to rehabilitate its irrigation systems so that the water is properly managed.[266]

In Afghanistan,

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]

The northeastern Hindu Kush

6.3 magnitude earthquake struck northwest of Herat, killing over 1,400 people.[272]

Climate

Köppen climate map of Afghanistan[273]

Afghanistan has a

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]

Although Afghanistan has contributed minimally to global greenhouse gas emissions, it is one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change and least prepared to cope with its impacts.[276] Climate change in Afghanistan is causing more frequent and severe droughts.[277][278] Severe drought conditions affect 25 of the country's 34 provinces, impacting over half the population.[279] These droughts cause desertification,[280][281] reduce food[282] and water security,[283] disrupt agriculture and cause internal displacement.[284] Extreme rainfall over short periods is also more likely, increasing the risk of floods and landslides.[285] Due to rising temperatures, almost 14% of Afghanistan's glacier coverage was lost between 1990 and 2015[286] increasing the risk of glacial lake outburst floods.[287] By 2050, climate change could displace an additional 5 million people within Afghanistan.[288][289]

Biodiversity

Main article: Wildlife of Afghanistan
The snow leopard is the official national animal of Afghanistan.

Several types of mammals exist throughout Afghanistan.

wild sheep, lynx and other big cats populate the mountain forest region of the east. In the semi-desert northern plains, wildlife include a variety of birds, hedgehogs, gophers, and large carnivores such as jackals and hyenas.[290]

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]

Endemic fauna of Afghanistan includes the Afghan flying squirrel, Afghan snowfinch, Paradactylodon (or the "Paghman mountain salamander"), Stigmella kasyi, Vulcaniella kabulensis, Afghan leopard gecko, Wheeleria parviflorellus, among others. Endemic flora include Iris afghanica. Afghanistan has a wide variety of birds despite its relatively arid climate – an estimated 460 species of which 235 breed within.[292]

The forest region of Afghanistan has vegetation such as

Band-e Amir, Wakhan and Nuristan. Afghanistan had a 2018 Forest Landscape Integrity Index mean score of 8.85/10, ranking it 15th globally out of 172 countries.[293]

Government and politics

Main article: Politics of Afghanistan
The Arg (the Presidential palace) in Kabul, photographed in 2020

Following the effective collapse of the

V-Dem Democracy indices Afghanistan in 2023 was the third least electoral democratic country in Asia.[296]

A traditional instrument of governance in Afghanistan is the

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]

Development of Taliban government

Main article:
Government of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan
See also: Cabinet of Afghanistan § Islamic Emirate (2021–present)
Interior Minister
Mullah Yaqoob
Second Deputy Leader and Acting Defense Minister
Abdul Ghani Baradar
Third Deputy Leader and Acting First Deputy Prime Minister

On 17 August 2021, the leader of the Taliban-affiliated Hezb-e-Islami Gulbuddin party, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, met with both Hamid Karzai, the former President of Afghanistan, and Abdullah Abdullah, the former chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation and former Chief Executive, in Doha, Qatar, with the aim of forming a national unity government.[301][302] President Ashraf Ghani, having fled the country during the Taliban advance to either Tajikistan or Uzbekistan, emerged in the United Arab Emirates and said that he supported such negotiations and was in talks to return to Afghanistan.[303][304] Many figures within the Taliban generally agreed that continuation of the 2004 Constitution of Afghanistan may, if correctly applied, be workable as the basis for the new religious state as their objections to the former government were political, and not religious.[305]

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

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.[295][312] 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.[313]

Administrative divisions

Main articles: Provinces of Afghanistan and Districts of Afghanistan

Afghanistan is administratively divided into 34 provinces (

wilayat).[314] 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.[315] 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.[316]
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.[317]

Afghanistan is divided into 34 provinces, which are further divided into a number of districts.

The 34 provinces in alphabetical order are:

  1. Badakhshan
  2. Badghis
  3. Baghlan
  4. Balkh
  5. Bamyan
  6. Daykundi
  7. Farah
  8. Faryab
  9. Ghazni
  10. Ghor
  11. Helmand
  12. Herat
  13. Jowzjan
  14. Kabul
  15. Kandahar
  16. Kapisa
  17. Khost
  18. Kunar
  19. Kunduz
  20. Laghman
  21. Logar
  22. Nangarhar
  23. Nimruz
  24. Nuristan
  25. Oruzgan
  26. Paktia
  27. Paktika
  28. Panjshir
  29. Parwan
  30. Samangan
  31. Sar-e Pol
  32. Takhar
  33. Wardak
  34. Zabul

Foreign relations

Main article: Foreign relations of Afghanistan
See also: Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Afghanistan)

Afghanistan became a member of the United Nations in 1946.[318] 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.[319] 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

Strategic Partnership Agreement in which Afghanistan became a major non-NATO ally.[322] Such qualification was rescinded by US President Joe Biden in July 2022.[323]

Military

Main article: Afghan Armed Forces

The

Armed Forces of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan captured a large amount of weapons, hardware, vehicles, aerocrafts, and equipment from the Afghan National Security Forces following the 2021 Taliban offensive and the Fall of Kabul. The total value of the captured equipment has been estimated at US$83 billion.[324][325]

Human rights

See also:
LGBT rights in Afghanistan, Treatment of women by the Taliban, and Afghan refugees

Homosexuality is

punished by death.[328][329] 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,[330] Hindus,[331] and Christians have reportedly faced persecution.[332][333]

Since May 2022, all women in Afghanistan have been required by law to wear full-body coverings when in public (either a

Deputy Leader Sirajuddin Haqqani claimed the decree is only advisory and no form of hijab is compulsory in Afghanistan,[336] though this contradicts the reality.[337] 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.[338] Another decree was issued shortly after the first, requiring female TV presenters to cover their faces during broadcasts.[339] 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.[340][341][342]

In May 2022, the Taliban dissolved Afghanistan's Human Rights Commission along with four other government departments, citing the country's budget deficit.[343]

Economy

Main article: Economy of Afghanistan
Workers processing pomegranates (anaar), for which Afghanistan is famous in Asia

Afghanistan's nominal GDP was $20.1 billion in 2020, or $81 billion by purchasing power parity (PPP).[344] Its GDP per capita is $2,459 (PPP) and $611 by nominal.[344] Despite having $1 trillion 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 $7 billion worth of goods but exports only $784 million, mainly fruits and nuts. It has $2.8 billion in external debt.[261] The service sector contributed the most to the GDP (55.9%) followed by agriculture (23%) and industry (21.1%).[346]

First Micro Finance Bank
.

Afghan rugs
are one of Afghanistan's main exports.

One of the main drivers for the current economic recovery is the return of over 5 million

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 $1.5 billion 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

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 $9 billion 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]

Agriculture

Afghan saffron

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 (19,469 kg 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]

Mining

Main article: Mining in Afghanistan
Lapis lazuli stones

The country's natural resources include: coal, copper, iron ore,

US Geological Survey are worth at least $1 trillion.[377]

natural gas liquids.[379] In 2011, Afghanistan signed an oil exploration contract with China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) for the development of three oil fields along the Amu Darya river in the north.[380]

The country has significant amounts of

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]

Energy

Main articles: Energy in Afghanistan and Renewable energy in Afghanistan
Afghanistan electricity supply (1980–2019)

According to the

Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline.[395] Power is managed by the Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat
(DABS, Afghanistan Electricity Company).

Important dams include the

Sardeh Band Dam.[263]

Tourism

Main article: Tourism in Afghanistan
Band-e Amir National Park

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 Minaret of Jam, a UNESCO World Heritage Site

The city of

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 improvement in Afghanistan following the Taliban takeover. Active efforts by the Taliban encouraged tourism to increase from 691 tourists in 2021, to 2,300 in 2022, to 5,200 in 2023, with some estimates of between 7,000 and 10,000.[407][408][409] This is, however, threatened by the Islamic State – Khorasan Province, who took responsibility for attacks on tourists, such as the 2024 Bamyan shooting.[410]

Communication

Main article: Communications in Afghanistan

Telecommunication services in Afghanistan are provided by

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 $2 billion industry, with 22 million mobile phone subscribers and 5 million internet users. The sector employs at least 120,000 people nationwide.[411]

Transportation

Main article: Transport in Afghanistan
See also: List of airports in Afghanistan and Rail transport in Afghanistan
The Salang Tunnel

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 (1,370 mi) 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]

An Ariana Afghan Airlines Airbus A310 in 2006

Air transport in Afghanistan is provided by the national carrier,

Bagram Air Base
is a major military airfield.

The country has three rail links: one, a 75-kilometre (47 mi) line from

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 (78 mi) 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]

Demographics

Main articles: Afghans, Demographics of Afghanistan, and Afghan diaspora
A Cold War-era CIA map showing traditional Afghan tribal territories. Pashtun tribes form the world's largest tribal society.[428]

Population

The population of Afghanistan was estimated at 32.9 million as of 2019 by the Afghanistan Statistics and Information Authority,[429] whereas the UN estimates over 38.0 million.[430] In 1979 the total population was reported to be about 15.5 million.[431] About 23.9% of them are urbanite, 71.4% live in rural areas, and the remaining 4.7% are nomadic.[432] An additional 3 million 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 82 million 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]

 
Largest cities or towns in Afghanistan
2019 estimate[442]
Rank Name Province Pop.
Kabul
Kabul
Kandahar
Kandahar 		1 Kabul Kabul Province 4,273,200 Herat
Herat
Mazar-i-Sharif
Mazar-i-Sharif
2 Kandahar Kandahar Province 614,300
3 Herat Herat Province 556,200
4 Mazar-i-Sharif Balkh Province 469,200
5 Jalalabad Nangarhar Province 356,500
6 Kunduz Kunduz Province 263,200
7 Taloqan Takhar Province 253,700
8 Puli Khumri Baghlan Province 237,900
9 Ghazni Ghazni Province 183,000
10 Khost Khost Province 153,300

Ethnicity and languages

Main articles: Ethnic groups in Afghanistan and Languages of Afghanistan
See also: Afghans
Ethnolinguistic map of Afghanistan (2001)

Afghan National Anthem.[444]

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]

When it comes to foreign languages among the populace, many are able to speak or understand

taught in public schools during the 1980s.[449]

Religion

Main article: Religion in Afghanistan
Blue Mosque in Mazar-i-Sharif
is the largest mosque in Afghanistan.

The CIA estimated in 2009 that 99.7% of the Afghan population was Muslim

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)[454][455] accompanied by gurdwaras and mandirs.[456] According to Deutsche Welle in September 2021, 250 remain in the country after 67 were evacuated to India.[457]

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.[458][459][460]

Afghan Christians, who number 500–8,000, practice their faith secretly due to intense societal opposition, and there are no public churches.[461][462]

Education

Main article: Education in Afghanistan
UNESCO Institute of Statistics Afghanistan Literacy Rate among population aged 15+ (1980–2018)

formal learning.[466] As of 2018 the literacy rate of the population age 15 and older is 43.02% (males 55.48% and females 29.81%).[467]

The top universities in Afghanistan are the

Khost University
in the east.

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.

Day Kundi, still allow girl's schools from grade 6 and up.[469][470] 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.[471] As of November 2024, some parts of the country allow women to attend religious schools to pursue dentistry, nursing, and other subjects.[472]

Health

Main article: Health in Afghanistan
The Daoud Khan Military Hospital in Kabul is one of the largest hospitals in Afghanistan.

According to the

maternal mortality rate is 396 deaths/100,000 live births and its infant mortality rate is 66[474] to 112.8 deaths in every 1,000 live births.[261] The Ministry of Public Health plans to cut the infant mortality rate to 400 for every 100,000 live births before 2020. The country has more than 3,000 midwives, with an additional 300 to 400 being trained each year.[475]

There are over 100

Jinnah Hospital.[477]
In spite of all this, many Afghans travel to Pakistan and India for advanced treatment.

It was reported in 2006 that nearly 60% of the Afghan population lives within a two-hour walk of the nearest health facility.[478] The disability rate is also high in Afghanistan due to the decades of war.[479] It was reported recently that about 80,000 people are missing limbs.[480][481] Non-governmental charities such as Save the Children and Mahboba's Promise assist orphans in association with governmental structures.[482]

Culture

Main article: Culture of Afghanistan
An Afghan family near Kholm, 1939 – most Afghans are tribal.

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.

parallel cousin, and the groom is often expected to pay a bride price.[492]

A house occupied by nomadic kochi people in Nangarhar Province

In the villages, families typically occupy

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.[483]

Mazari hat originates from northern Afghanistan.[496]

Architecture

Main article: Architecture of Afghanistan
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

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,[499] and the tomb of Sher Shah Suri, an Afghan Emperor of India.[500]

Art and ceramics

Main article: Afghan art
A traditional Afghan embroidery pattern

Carpet

war rugs", a variant of Afghan rugs, were created with designs representing pain and misery caused by the conflict.[502] Every province has its own specific characteristics in making rugs.[503] In some of the Turkic-populated areas in the north-west, bride and wedding ceremony prices are driven by the bride's weaving skills.[504]

Chinese porcelain as cobalt blue, later used in ancient Mesopotamia and Turkey.[508]

The lands of Afghanistan have a long history of art, with the world's earliest known usage of

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.

Literature

See also: Poetry of Afghanistan

Classic

Divs, monstrous creatures.[513] Thursdays are traditionally "poetry night" in the city of Herat when men, women and children gather and recite both ancient and modern poems.[514]

Three mystical authors are considered true national glories (although claimed with equal ardor by Iran), namely:

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.

Rabi'a Balkhi, Jami, Rahman Baba, Khalilullah Khalili, and Parween Pazhwak.[515]

Music

Main article: Music of Afghanistan
The Afghan rubab

Afghan classical music has close historical links with

Ustad Sarahang and Sarban.[516]

Pop music developed in the 1950s through

Ubaidullah Jan, Mahwash, Ahmad Wali, Farhad Darya, and Naghma.[518]

Attan is the national dance of Afghanistan, a group dance popularly performed by Afghans of all backgrounds.[519] The dance is considered part of Afghan identity.[520]

Media and entertainment

Main article:
Media of Afghanistan

Afghanistan has around 350

Radio Kabul was broadcasting local radio services.[523] Voice of America, BBC, and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) broadcast in both of Afghanistan's official languages on radio.[524]
Press restrictions have been gradually relaxed and private media diversified since 2002, after more than two decades of tight controls.

Afghans have long been accustomed to watching Indian

Zarine Khan, Celina Jaitly, and a number of others. Several Bollywood films have been shot inside Afghanistan, including Dharmatma, Khuda Gawah, Escape from Taliban, and Kabul Express
.

Cuisine

Main article: Afghan cuisine
Non, the most widely consumed bread in Afghanistan

Afghan cuisine is largely based upon the nation's chief crops, such as wheat, maize,

Kabuli palaw is the national dish of Afghanistan.[528] The nation's culinary specialties reflect its ethnic and geographic diversity.[529] Afghanistan is known for its high-quality pomegranates, grapes, and sweet melons.[530] Tea is a favorite drink among Afghans. A typical Afghan diet consists of naan, yogurt, rice, and meat.[483]

Holidays and festivals

Haft Mewa (Seven Fruit Syrup), popularly consumed during Nowruz

Afghanistan's official New Year starts with

In Afghanistan, Nowruz is typically celebrated with music and dance, as well as holding buzkashi tournaments.[531]

Yaldā, another nationally celebrated ancient tradition,[532] 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),[533][534] during which families gather together to recite poetry and eat fruit.[535][536]

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[537] and the Hindu festival Diwali by the Hindu community.[538]

National Independence Day is celebrated on 19 August to mark the Anglo-Afghan Treaty of 1919 and the country's full independence.[261] Several international celebrations are also officially held in Afghanistan, such as International Workers' Day,[539] and International Women's Day.[540] Some regional festivals include the Red Flower Festival (during Nowruz) in Mazar-i-Sharif,[541] and the Damboora Festival in Bamyan Province.[542]

Sports

Main article: Sport in Afghanistan
See also: Traditional games of Afghanistan
The ancient national sport of Afghanistan, Buzkashi

Sport in Afghanistan is managed by the

handball, boxing, taekwondo, weightlifting, bodybuilding, track and field, skating, bowling, snooker, chess
, and other sports.

The

2012 Asian Beach Games. In 2013, Afghanistan's football team followed as it won the SAFF Championship.[546]

The

Ghazi Amanullah Khan International Cricket Stadium near Jalalabad
. Domestically, cricket is played between teams from different provinces.

The Afghanistan national football team has been competing in international football since 1941.[549] The national team plays its home games at the Ghazi Stadium in Kabul, while football in Afghanistan is governed by the Afghanistan Football Federation. The national team has never competed or qualified for the FIFA World Cup but won an international football trophy in 2013.[546] The country also has a national team in the sport of futsal, a 5-a-side variation of football.

The traditional and the national sport of Afghanistan is buzkashi, particularly popular in the north.[550] It is similar to polo, played by horsemen in two teams, each trying to grab and hold a goat carcass.[551] The Afghan Hound (a type of running dog) originated in Afghanistan and was used in wolf hunting.[552]

See also

Explanatory notes

  1. ^ 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]
  2. ^ Other demonyms that have been used are Afghani,[9] Afghanese and Afghanistani (see Afghans for further details)[10]
  3. ^ 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 March 2023), and increasingly rules by decree.[18]
  4. ^ /æfˈɡænɪstæn, æfˈɡɑːnɪstɑːn/ ⓘ
  5. Dari
    : امارت اسلامی افغانستان
  • ^ 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]

    • References

    Citations

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    2. ISSN 0040-781X. Archived
      from the original on 19 August 2021. Retrieved 19 August 2021.
    3. ^ Islamic Republic of Afghanistan in Geonames.org (CC BY)
    4. ^ a b "Population Matters". 3 March 2016. Archived from the original on 16 August 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2021.
    5. ^ a b "Afghanistan's ethnic mosaic". The Times of India. 23 August 2021. Archived from the original on 18 September 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2021.
    6. ^ a b "Afghanistan Population 2021". World Population Review. 19 September 2021.
    7. ^ "Distribution of Afghan population by ethnic group 2020". 20 August 2021. Archived from the original on 18 September 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2021.
    8. ^ a b "Afghan Ethnic Groups: A Brief Investigation". 14 August 2011. Archived from the original on 18 September 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2021.
    9. ^ Dictionary.com. The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Houghton Mifflin Company, 2004. Reference.com Archived 3 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine (Retrieved 13 November 2007).
    10. ^ Dictionary.com. WordNet 3.0. Princeton University. Reference.com (Retrieved 13 November 2007). Archived 28 March 2014 at the Wayback Machine
    11. ^ "Constitution of Afghanistan". 2004. Archived from the original on 20 September 2016. Retrieved 16 February 2013.
    12. ISBN 9781107660151. Archived
      from the original on 3 March 2021. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
    13. ^
    14. ^
    15. ^ T. S. Tirumurti (26 May 2022). "Letter dated 25 May 2022 from the Chair of the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 1988 (2011) addressed to the President of the Security Council" (PDF). United Nations Security Council. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
    16. JURIST. Archived
      from the original on 17 January 2024. Retrieved 1 May 2023.
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    General and cited sources

    Further reading

    Main article: Bibliography of Afghanistan
    See also: Bibliography of the history of Central Asia