Afghans discovered America a thousand years before Christopher
Christopher Columbus may be rocked on his pedestal by an unlikely contender. A book authored by a Canadian writer claims that Buddhist monks from Afghanistan discovered America a thousand years before Columbus.
Popular history believes that Christopher Columbus discovered America in 1492 while searching for India. This theory is however likely to be challenged soon with the publication of a book 'An Impossible Journey from Kabul to Chiapas' by Gary Geddes. Geddes argues that Afghan Buddhist monks had traveled to the American Continent a thousand years before Christopher Columbus.
Afghan historians and researchers have also confirmed the idea. The late Abdul Shakoor Rashad, doyen of Afghan historians with 30 books on history and literature to his credit, had written about this theory on several occasions, contending that Afghan monks had reached America through China.
Geddes, a poet and a historian visited Afghanistan in 2001 during the Taliban regime to collect material for his book. Geddes has investigated Rashad's idea and studied the route on which the Afghan monks reached the coast of America through China, collecting evidence to back his theory.
A group of five Buddhist monks led by Hu Shin went to China from Kabul via the Silk Route in 458 A.D. and from there they got to the American coastlines of the Pacific Ocean by sea. This group toured Canada and America on foot and ended up in the Chiapas province of Mexico he says.
Academics have earlier also discussed the journey of people from the Asian coastlines of the Pacific to America and the release of the new book will bring new evidence to the debate.
The Canada Desk Director in the Foreign Ministry of Afghanistan, Mohammad Hassan Sobman, who helped Geddes in collection of the material, say the book will bring Afghanistan on the center stage internationally.
"Afghanistan has been put back on the stage after decades of isolation and now with disclosure of the fact that Afghans were the first discoverers of America, the country will be never drop off the map", Sobman said.
Afghan artist, Mohammad Yousuf Asifi, appreciating the writer's efforts, told Pajhwok that the historical monuments excavated from Afghanistan shows that Afghanistan was pioneer of other countries in religious affairs. "We have left back a strong history.," he said.
He asked Afghan researchers and historians to embark on in-depth investigations and demonstrate to the world a clear picture and identity of Afghanistan.
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Afghans discovered America
Short Afghan Wisdom Stories
DONT BE TAKEN IN BY THE RAT RACE
A minister once fell from grace. He left court and joined a group of dervishes. By virtue of their company, he achieved peace of mind and a reformed character.
The ruler soon changed his mind and decided to reinstate the disgraced minister. The man refused and said: "I prefer to live in retirement than to busy myself with politics. Whoever opts for a quiet life is free to forget the snarling calamities of rivals. I may no longer have the minister's special pencase, I may have torn up all my papers, but at least I no longer have to put up with bad mouthing from my critics."
The ruler replied: "I always need a competent and wise man to help run the state."
"The sign of wisdom in a man, " the ex-minister replied, "is precisely not to be taken in by the false attractions of politics. Why is the Huma superior to other birds? Because it is content to live off dry bones and thus never oppresses any living thing. Have you heard the story of the lynx? It was asked why it chose to serve in the court of the lion and replied that at court it could live safely protected from its enemies and well-fed with the left-overs of the king's meals. The lynx was also asked why it did not, like other courtiers, manuvere to get itself into the innermost circle of the lion's most trusted companions. Whereupon it said: 'I can not be safe from the king's anger if I am too close to him.' The Zoroastrian can spend his whole life tending the fire he worships; the fire will burn him up none the less, if ever he falls into it! Your Majesty's companions never know whether they will make a fortune or lose their heads! It is well known that one should be aware of the ruler's fickle moods; he takes offense at a polite greeting one moment and the next he showers rewards on someone who has just insulted him. To be a courtier, you have to be as slippery as an eel; to be a wise man, you have to aim higher. Let politicians flatter and lie and cheat their way to the top! I know my own human worth: that dignity is enough for me."
EVEN FRIENDSHIP HAS ITS LIMITS
There was once a man who was a champion wrestler. He had mastered 360 holds and tricks, and used a different one every day of the year. It so happened that he was fond of one of his students, and taught him all his tricks, except one. He kept on postponing the day when he would teach him the last trick.
The boy grew in strength and skill, and no one among his contemporaries was able to challenge him. One day, he boasted in front of the king: "My teacher is unchallenged only because he is older than me and because I respect him as my teacher. Otherwise my strength is not less than his and my skill is quite equal to his."
The King did not appreciate this boasting and ordered a match to take place. They cleared the broad wrestling ground and gathered ministers, courtiers and sportsmen to watch.
The boy charged out into the ring like a mad elephant. His master knew that his pupil was not stronger than him, so he used the 360th hold the he had never taught him. The boy did not know how to counter it. He was helpless. His master raised him with both hands above his head and smashed him to the ground. The crowd cheered wildly.
The King congratulated the champion and ordered a robe of honor to be given to him. He reproached the boy, saying: "You were ill-bred enough to dare to challenge your teacher and how you see how hollow your boast was!"
The boy answered: "O lord of the word! He did not overpower me with his strength but rather because of one trick which he never accepted to teach me. Today this one trick gave him the victory."
The King retorted: "It was just for such a day that he had kept his trick! Have you not heard what the wise say? "Never give a friend such power over you that if one day he tries to be your enemy, he can defeat you."
The teacher betrayed by his pupil said: "There is no such thing as loyalty in this world, or at least no one today knows the meaning of loyalty. Whoever learned a trick from me, finally tried to do me down."
RESPECT FOLLOWS SERVICE
A dervish was once sitting alone, meditating in a patch of desert. A ruler passed by. The dervish, being free from the cares of this world, neither lifted his head nor paid any attention. The ruler, with the violent pride of power, was furious and said: "These dervishes in their patched cloaks are no better than animals!"
His minister scolded the dervish and said: "The great ruler of all the world passed by and you did not stand and bow: why were you so rude?"
The dervish replied: "Tell your king to expect those people to bow who hope for some reward from him. Tell him that rulers are there to protect their people. The people were not created just to obey rulers. The ruler is the watchman of the poor, though he has greater wealth and glory. The sheep are not made for the shepherd, rather the shepherd is there to serve the sheep. Look around you: today you see one man carefree and successful, the other struggling sore-hearted to survive. Wait a day or two, and see how the earth devours the brain once troubled with so many foolish thoughts! When the irresistible decrees of Fate are issued, neither king nor slave remain. Open up the tomb and and search these dusty bones: can you tell which was the rich man or which was the pauper?"
The ruler was struck by the words of the dervish. He said: "Ask me a favor!"
The dervish replied: "I would ask you to never disturb me again."
The king begged: "Give me a word of advice!"
The dervish replied: "Now that wealth is in your hands, realize before it is too late, that this wealth and this power pass from hand to hand."
MONEY DOES NOT MAKE THE MAN
I saw a pot-bellied fool wearing expensive clothes while sitting on a fine Arab horse. A bystander asked me: "What do you think, Sa'di, of these fine silks on that crass idiot?"
"It is like bad writing in gold ink. That ass has none of the moral qualities of a human being. All his pretences are false, all his possessions acquired dishonestly; he is fit only for a slaughter-house. A person of quality may fall on hard days, but never think his quality is any the less for his being impoverished. A man who makes quick money dishonestly can plate his house in gold, yet no one will forget the base stock he sprang from."
A Brief History of Afghanistan: By Adam Ritscher
The story of Afghanistan is in so many ways a very tragic one. Afghanistan is one of the most impoverished nations of the world. It is one of the most war-torn, most ravaged, and most beleaguered of nations. It is a nation that has been beset by invasion, external pressure and internal upheaval since before the time of Alexander the Great. Its people are a people who have endured more than most of us can ever imagine. In fact, for many Afghanis, all that has changed in the last one thousand years are the weapons which have been used against so many of them. It is therefore with great sadness and respect that I tell the story of Afghanistan.
First of all, who are the Afghanis? Afghanistan has historically been the link between Central Asia, the Middle East and the Indian sub-continent. It is therefore a nation made up of many different nationalities – the result of innumerable invasions and migrations. Within its current borders there are at least a dozen major ethnic groups – Baluch, Chahar Aimak, Turkmen, Hazara, Pashtun, Tajik, Uzbek, Nuristani, Arab, Kirghiz, Pashai and Persian.
Historically the Pashtun nationality has been the most dominant. The term Afghan, for example, generally is viewed by other peoples in the country to refer to the Pashtuns. The royal families of the country were Pashtun, and today the Pashtun represent about 50% of the total population. Tajiks come in second with 25%, and the rest make up considerably smaller percentages.
Within the country there are tiny Hindu, Sikh and Jewish communities, but the vast majority of this people are Muslims – and in fact many ethnic groups consider Islam to be one of the defining aspects of their ethnic identity. This is true of the Pashtun for example.
Islam was brought to Afghanistan during the eight and ninth century by the Arabs. Prior to that the nation had been ruled by various Persian, Greek, Sassasian and Central Asian empires. Following a subsequent break down in Arab rule, semi-independent states began to form. These local dynasties and states however were overwhelmed and crushed during the Mongolian invasions of the 1200s – conquerors who were to remain in control of part or all of the country until the 1500s, despite much resistance and internal strife. Following the collapse of Mongol rule, Afghanistan found itself in a situation much like what has continued into modern times – caught between the vice of two great powers. During this time it was the Mughals of northern India and the Safavids of Iran that fought over the mountains and valleys of Afghanistan. Armies marched to and fro devastating the land and murdering the people, laying siege to city after city, and destroying whatever had been left by the invading army that preceded it.
It was not until 1747 that Afghanistan was able to free itself. This was the year that Nadir Shah, an empire builder from Iran, died and left a vacuum in central Asia that a former Afghan bodyguard, named Ahmed Shah, was able to fill. Ahmad was a Pashtun, and his Pashtun clan was to rule Afghanistan, in one form or another, for the next 200 years.
Ahmad was able to unify the different Afghan tribes, and went on to conquer considerable parts of what are today eastern Iran, Pakistan, northern India and Uzbekistan. His successors though proved unable to hold his vast empire together, and within 50 years much of it had been seized by rival regional powers. Within the country there were numerous bloody civil wars for the throne, and for many Afghanis it meant little that their lives were now being uprooted and destroyed by ethnic kin, as opposed to foreign invaders.
Beginning in the 1800s Afghanistan's internal affairs became dramatically aggravated by the increasing intervention by two new imperialist powers – the British Empire and Czarist Russia. The British were expanding and consolidating their colonial holdings on the India sub-continent, and were looking at the Hindu Kush mountains of Afghanistan as a natural barrier to prevent invasion by rival imperialists. The Russians, for their part, were expanding south and east, swallowing up several formerly independent sultanates and emirates in Central Asia. The two great powers essentially engaged in a race for Afghanistan, and their fiendish seizures of land, overthrow of indigenous nations and reckless interference into the affairs of the remaining independent states in the region became known as "the Great Game."
Imperialists often give such trivial, and even humorous, sounding names to their interventionist schemes, but don't be fooled into thinking that the peoples of the region experienced the consequences of these actions in a manner that they in any way would have interpreted as a game. For them the consequences were devastating. The arrival of European imperialism into the region simply accelerated, and made more devastating, the wars, poverty and material destruction that had already wracked the region.
During this time, on two separate occasions, British armies from India outright invaded Afghanistan in attempts to install puppet governments amenable to British economic interests, and that would oppose the economic interests of Czarist Russia.
The first, which became known as the First Anglo-Afghan War, took place in 1838. Outraged by the presence of a single Russian diplomat in Kabul, the British demanded that Afghanistan shun any contact with Russia or Iran, and that it hand over vast tracts of Pashtun inhabited land to British India (regions that are today party of Pakistan). Dost Mohammad, the Afghan ruler, agreed to these humiliating demands, but the British still invaded the country. The British seized most of the major cities in Afghanistan with little resistance, but their heavy handed rule soon resulted in a popular uprising by the people which resulted in the massacre of the entire British army of 15,000, save one.
British outrage over the uninvited arrival of a Russian diplomatic envoy in Kabul in 1878 resulted in the Second Anglo-Afghan War. Again the British were able to occupy all of the major cities, but unlike the last time, the British got wind of an impending rebellion against their occupation, and brutally crushed it in a pre-emptive move. They did subsequently withdraw, but not before they set up a puppet ruler and forced the country to hand over control of its foreign affairs to Britain.
Afghanistan would remain a British protectorate until 1919. Then, following the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917 and the wave of popular rebellions that rippled through Asia subsequently, the then king of Afghanistan, Amanullah, declared his country's full independence by singing a treaty of aid and friendship with Lenin, and declaring war on Britain. After a brief period of border skirmishes, and the bombing of Kabul by the Royal Air Force, Britain conceded Afghanistan's independence. Stung by this turn of events though, Britain conspired with conservative religious and land owning elements with the country who were unhappy with Amanullah's attempts to secularize and reform the country. The outbreak of an uprising and civil war forced him to abdicate in 1929. Different warlords contended for power until a new king, Muhammad Nadir Shah took power. He was assassinated four years later by the son of a state execution victim, and was succeeded by Muhammad Zahir Shah, who was to be Afghanistan's last king, and who would rule for the next 40 years.
Zahir Shah's rule, like the kings before him, was one of almost total autocratic power. The word of the king was the word of law. And while advisory councils and assemblies were sometimes called to advise the king, these bodies had no power, and in no way represented the people of Afghanistan. These bodies were made up of the country's tribal elders – a nice sounding term that in reality referred to the brutal land owners and patriarchs. And while some history books refer to this time of Afghanistan's history as one where attempts were made to "modernize" the country – all this really meant was newer rifles for the army, the purchase a few airplanes for a token air force, the creation of a tiny airline to shuttle the ruling elite around, and some telegraph wires to allow the king to collect this taxes more promptly. Under his rule political parties were outlawed, and students were shot and killed when they protested.
In 1973, the king was overthrown and a republic was declared. But this in reality represented very little. For the king had simply been overthrown by a prominent member of his own family, Daoud, who decided to title himself president instead of king.
Under Daoud a certain liberalization took place, meaning that some of the most draconian realities of the monarchy were rolled back, but by and large whatever hopes and expectations arose among the people – little was done to satisfy them.
Daoud had seized power with the help of an underground party named the Peoples Democratic Party of Afghanistan – a pro-Moscow communist party. The PDPA had aided and collaborated with Daoud in exchange for government posts. Once he had consolidated power though and felt he no longer needed these controversial allies, he ditched them, and ordered a crack down upon the party.
In 1978 the PDPA seized power from Daoud in a military coup. After seizing power they began a series of limited reforms, such as declaring, more or less, a secular state, and that women were deserving of equal treatment of men. They sought to curtail the practice of purchasing brides, and tried to implement a land reform program. They quickly met with fierce opposition from many sections of the deeply religious population though. The PDPA's response to this was very heavy-handed, aggravating the situation. Soon several rural areas rose in open armed rebellion against the new government.
At the same time, the party's long history of factionalism came to a bloody head as the more radical wing of the party sought to wipe out the more moderate leaning wing.
Immediately following the PDPA coup, the Soviet Union took an active interest in the so-called socialist revolution unfolding in its backyard. Dismayed by the clumsiness of the radical faction of the PDPA, the Soviet Union invaded in 1979 and handed power over a man named Karmal, who was the leader of the more moderate faction of the PDPA.
Though perhaps this was not the Soviets original intent, once inside Afghanistan, they found themselves forced to commit more and more troops and material to prop up the unpopular PDPA government. Several Islamic fundamentalist groups sprang up and began waging guerilla warfare, many of them operating from camps set up by the CIA and Pakistani Intelligence within Pakistan, from which they could strike into Afghanistan, and then beat a hasty retreat over a guarded border.
For its part, the United States government initially paid little attention to the PDPA coup in Afghanistan; its attention was instead focused to the west, where a popular revolution has overthrown their most valuable Middle East ally, the brutal and autocratic Shah of Iran. This changed of course once the Soviet Union sent troops into Afghanistan.
At that point the United States took an active interest in the Islamic fundamentalists waging war on the PDPA and the Soviets. The CIA began providing military training to the Mujahadeen – the name the Islamic guerillas came to be called. They provided what in the end amounted to billions of dollars worth of weapons, including sophisticated anti-aircraft and anti-tank missiles that allowed the guerillas to take out modern Soviet tanks and jet planes.
After offensive after offensive, year after year, gradually the Soviet military became discouraged. They were able to occupy and hold all of the major cities, just at the British imperialists had been able to the century before, but they were unable to subjugate the countryside. Soviet causalities began to mount dramatically, and with the CIA's providing the Mujahadeen with Stinger missiles, even their control of the air was becoming a costly affair.
At the same time the CIA kept increasing and updating the Mujahadeen's supply of weaponry, the Saudis and Persian Gulf Emirates contributed billions of dollars to their coffers, and thousands of Arabs responded to the Mujahadeen's call for jihad, or holy war, against the secular Soviets – including the wealthy Saudi playboy, Osama bin Laden – who quickly became one of the CIA's most important operatives in its proxy war against communism.
In 1989 the Soviets withdrew, leaving the PDPA government to fend for itself. The CIA soon lost interest in its mercenary forces now that they had accomplished their mission of bleeding the Soviets white. The misc. Mujahadeen factions began fighting as much with themselves as with the PDPA forces, resulting in increased suffering and bloodshed. It wasn't until 1992 that Mujahadeen fighters were able to topple the remnants of the PDPA government – ending the Stalinists attempts to bring revolution to the people of Afghanistan at the point of a gun.
Different Mujahadeen warlords occupied different cities and regions of the country. Burhanuddin Rabbani, the same Northern Alliance warlord who recently took Kabul from the Taliban, was the warlord who ruled over the city from 1992 until his ouster in 1996. During his reign over 60,000 people were murdered and thousands of women were raped. Current Northern Alliance warlord Rashid Dostum who is in control of the city of Mazar –E – Sharif, also ruled over it from 1992 until his ouster in 1997. Similarly the warlord Ismail Khan again rules the city of Heart, which he also ruled from 1992 to 1995; and warlord Yunis Khalis is back in control of Jalabad, which he ruled from 1992 to 1996.
The collapse of the PDPA government did not mark the end of Afghanistan's civil war. The Mujahadeen warlords continued to bring death and destruction upon the country as they fought over the spoils, and sought to enlarge their new fiefdoms at the expense of their neighboring rivals.
While the CIA, after having done such a fine job of instigating unrest and warfare in the 1980s, could care less about the aftermath, Pakistani Intelligence forces maintained their interest. Seeking to end the civil war which threatened the stability of their own country – itself a prison house of many nationalities – Pakistani Intelligence aided in the creation of a new Islamic fundamentalist movement, the Taliban. The Taliban was born in the Islamic schools that had sprung up inside the Afghan refugee camps inside Pakistan. Its leadership and the bulk of its initial ranks, were made up of young religious students, primarily Pashtuns, motivated by the zeal of religion and the belief that they were ordained to bring stability and the ways of Allah back to their war torn land. They railed against the corruption, greed and factionalism of the contending Mujahadeen factions inside Afghanistan, and when they mounted a military push to conquer the country, they were initially well received by certain sections of the weary population. Their ranks were filled by rank and file Mujahadeen fighters and young idealists from inside the country, and city-by-city they were able to occupy most of the country. In 1996 they captured the capital city of Kabul, and had forced most of the remaining warlords into a small pocket in the far north of the country. These warlords subsequently formed a defensive alliance termed the Northern Alliance. By the time of the start of the current war, Taliban offensives had reduced their enclave to a mere 10% of the country.
Once in power the Taliban sought to create a theocratic state based on their interpretations of the Koran. Though already severely repressed by the various Mujahadeen warlords, the plight of Afghanistan's women was made even worse under the new regime. The veil became the law of the land, and women were forbidden from attending school or holding employment outside of the home. Television was banned and an effort was made to purge the country of any signs or remnants of secular or Western influence. The country became politically and diplomatically isolated.
Then came the current war. Following the September 11 World Trade Center bombings the United States accused Osama Bin Laden of the crime. Bin Laden, who had left Afghanistan following the defeat of the Soviets, had returned after falling out of favor in Saudi Arabia, and being pressured to leave his first nation of refuge, the Sudan.
The U.S. government demanded that the Taliban hand over Bin Laden. The Taliban's response was to demand proof of Bin Laden's guilt, and after receiving none, they refused to hand him over.
Within a few weeks the United States began bombing the impoverished country, as well as providing active support to the Northern Alliance warlords. Following weeks of devastating bombing, and several failed offensives, the Northern Alliance succeeded in breaking out of its northern enclave, seizing the city of Mazar – E – Sharif, and then moving on to take Kabul. This set in motion a series of defeats for the Taliban, which began surrendering and abandoning almost every major city in the country, and retreating into the mountains. The U.S. meanwhile has continued its bombing campaign, and now has Marines on the ground hunting for Bin Laden. All the while the people of Afghanistan continue to suffer.
The United Nations, hardly a radical source of information, has estimated that up to 8 million Afghanis may starve this winter due to a shortage of food, made all the more severe by the intentional U.S. disruption of humanitarian aid, and bombing of Red Cross and other humanitarian aid facilities inside the country. At least hundreds, and more likely thousands, have been killed by U.S. bombs, and many more are dieing as the Northern Alliance and Taliban warlords fight it out. Hundreds of thousands of land mines and unexploded cluster bombs lay scattered across the nation's landscape. And there is no end in sight to the misery.
It's hard to say how much longer the Taliban will continue to fight, or when the U.S. will end its war. Afghanistan's future, like its past, looks very dark indeed. Currently Northern Alliance warlords, southern Pashtun warlords, opportunistic émigré politicians, and even supporters of the aging deposed autocrat King Zahir Shah, are arguing about who will be the exploiter-in-chief of the devastated land. Most likely they will come up with some sort of coalition government – that will perhaps hold the different factions together, perhaps not. In the end it matters little, since none of the figures involved represent the people of this country, and none of them seem to have ever had their interests at heart.
What is the solution for Afghanistan? What will end the suffering of its people? The most immediate thing would be for the United States government to end its bombing, withdraw its troops, and respect the Afghan peoples right to self-determination. And while this alone would not end all of the bloodshed and the fighting, it would create a situation where the workers and farmers of Afghanistan would be more able to cast off the warlords and petty feudal tyrants, take control of their destinies, and create a society that is based upon cooperation and solidarity. Towards that end let us redouble our efforts to stop the U.S. bombing, to stop the U.S. war on the people of Afghanistan!
Monday, May 23, 2011
Kabul
Kabul
| Kabul کابل | |
|---|---|
| — City — | |
        | |
  Kabul | |
| Coordinates: 34°31′59″N 69°09′58″E / 34.53306°N 69.16611°ECoordinates: 34°31′59″N 69°09′58″E / 34.53306°N 69.16611°E | |
| Country |  Afghanistan |
| Province | Kabul |
| No. of sectors | 18 |
| Government | |
| - Mayor | Muhammad Yunus Nawandish |
| Area | |
| - City | 275 km2 (106.2 sq mi) |
| - Metro | 425 km2 (164.1 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 1,790 m (5,873 ft) |
| Population (2008) | |
| - Metro | 2,850,000 |
| [1] | |
| Time zone | Afghanistan Standard Time (UTC+4:30) |
It is an economic and cultural centre, situated 5,900 ft (1,800 m) above sea level in a narrow valley, wedged between the Hindu Kush mountains along the Kabul River. The city is linked with Kandahar, Herat and Mazar-e Sharif via a circular highway that stretches across the country. It is also the start of the main road to Jalalabad and further to Peshawar, Pakistan.
Kabul's main products include fresh and dried fruit, nuts, Afghan rugs, leather and sheep skin products, domestic clothes and furniture, and antique replicas, but the wars since 1978 have limited the economic productivity of the city. Economic productivity has improved since the establishment of the Karzai administration in late 2001.[3]
Kabul is over 5000 years old; many empires have long fought over the city for its strategic location along the trade routes of South and Central Asia.[4] From 1504 to 1526, Kabul served as the original capital of Babur, builder of the Mughal Empire. It remained under the Delhi Sultanate until 1738, when Nader Shah and his Afsharid forces invaded the Mughal Empire.[5] After the death of Nader Shah Afsharid in 1747, the city fell to Ahmad Shah Durrani, who quickly added it to his new Afghan Empire.[6] In 1776, Timur Shah Durrani made it the capital of the modern state of Afghanistan. Since the 1980s Soviet war in Afghanistan, the city has been a target of militant groups. It is currently being re-developed[7] but attacks by Taliban and other militants are slowing down the reconstruction process.
Contents |
[edit] History
[edit] Antiquity
The Kabul valley is believed to be over 5,000-8000 years old. The word "Kubhā" is mentioned in Rigveda and the Avesta around 3000 BC, which appears to refer to the Kabul River.[8] The Rigveda praises it as an ideal city, a vision of paradise set in the mountains.[9] Others suggest that the city may have been established between 2000 BC and 1500 BC.[10] The area in which the Kabul valley sat in was part of the Median Empire before being conquered by the Persian Achaemenid Empire. There is a reference to a settlement called Kabura by the rulers of the Achaemenid Empire (Darius, Darius II and Darius III of Persia), which may be the basis for the future use of the name Kabura (Κάβουρα) by Ptolemy.[8] It became a centre of Zoroastrianism followed by Buddhism and Hinduism later. Alexander the Great explored the Kabul valley after his conquest of the Achaemenid Empire in 330 BC but no record has been made of Kabul, which may have been only a small town and not worth writing about.[4] The region became part of the Seleucid Empire before falling to the Indian Maurya Empire.The Greco-Bactrians captured Kabul from the Mauryans in the early 2nd century BC, then lost the city to their subordinates in the Indo-Greek Kingdom around the mid-2nd century BC. The Bactrians founded the town of Paropamisadae near Kabul, but it was later ceded to the Mauryans in the 1st century BC. Indo-Scythians expelled the Indo-Greeks by the mid 1st century BC, but lost the city to the Kushan Empire about 100 years later.[11]Alexander took these away from the Aryans and established settlements of his own, but Seleucus Nicator gave them to Sandrocottus (Chandragupta), upon terms of intermarriage and of receiving in exchange 500 elephants.[4]—Strabo, 64 BC–24 AD
Around 230 AD, the Kushans were defeated by the Sassanid Empire and replaced by Sassanid vassals known as the Indo-Sassanids. During the Sassanian period, the city was referred to as "Kapul" in Pahlavi scripts.[8] In 420 AD the Indo-Sassanids were driven out of Afghanistan by the Xionite tribe known as the Kidarites, who were then replaced in the 460s by the Hephthalites. It became part of the surviving Turk Shahi Kingdom of Kapisa, also known as Kabul-Shahan.[19] According to Táríkhu-l Hind by Al-Biruni, Kabul was governed by princes of Turkic lineage who's rule lasted for 60 generations.
The Kabul Turks and Hindus built a huge defensive wall around the city to protect it from future invaders. This wall has survived until today and is also considered a historical site.Kábul was formerly governed by princes of Turk lineage. It is said that they were originally from Tibet. The first of them was named Barhtigín, * * * * and the kingdom continued with his children for sixty generations. * * * * * The last of them was a Katormán, and his minister was Kalar, a Bráhman. This minister was favoured by fortune, and he found in the earth treasures which augmented his power. Fortune at the same time turned her back upon his master. The Katormán's thoughts and actions were evil, so that many complaints reached the minister, who loaded him with chains, and imprisoned him for his correction. In the end the minister yielded to the temptation of becoming sole master, and he had wealth sufficient to remove all obstacles. So he established himself on the throne. After him reigned the Bráhman(s) Samand, then Kamlúa, then Bhím, then Jaipál, then Anandpál, then Narda-janpál, who was killed in A.H. 412. His son, Bhímpál, succeeded him, after the lapse of five years, and under him the sovereignty of Hind became extinct, and no descendant remained to light a fire on the hearth. These princes, notwithstanding the extent of their dominions, were endowed with excellent qualities, faithful to their engagements, and gracious towards their inferiors...[19]—Abu Rayhan Biruni, 978-1048
[edit] Islamic conquest to the Mongol invasion
Over the centuries to come, the city was successively controlled by the Samanids, Ghaznavids, Ghurids, and Kartids. In the 13th century the Mongol horde passed through and caused massive destruction in the area. Report of a massacre in the close by Bamiyan is recorded around this period, where the entire population of the valley was annihilated by the Mongol troops as a revenge for the death of Genghis Khan's grandson. One of Genghis Khan's grandson is thought to be named Kabul.[22] During the Mongol invasion, many natives of Afghanistan fled to India where some established dynasties in Delhi."Kábul has a castle celebrated for its strength, accessible only by one road. In it there are Musulmáns, and it has a town, in which are infidels from Hind."[21]—Istahkrí, 921
Following the era of the Khilji dynasty in 1333, a famous Moroccan travelling scholar, Ibn Battuta, was visiting Kabul and he mentioned that Kabul was inhabited by Persian-speaking Afghan tribes:
We travelled on to Kabul, formerly a vast town, the site of which is now occupied by a village inhabited by a tribe of Persians called Afghans. They hold mountains and defiles and possess considerable strength, and are mostly highwaymen. Their principle mountain is called Kuh Sulayman.[23]—Ibn Battuta, 1304–1369
[edit] Timurid and Mughal era
Mirza Muhammad Haidar Dughlat, a poet from India who visited at the time wrote: "Dine and drink in Kabul: it is mountain, desert, city, river and all else." It was from here that Babur began his 1526 conquest of India. Babur wished to be buried in Kabul, a city he had always loved, but at first he was buried in Agra, India. Roughly nine years later his remains were dug back up and re-buried at Bagh-e Babur (Babur Gardens) in Kabul by Sher Shah Suri on orders by Babur's wife. The inscription on his tomb contains Persian words penned which state: "اگر پردیس روی زمین است همین است و همین است و همین است" (If there is a paradise on earth, it is this, it is this, it is this!)[25]In the country of Kābul there are many and various tribes. Its valleys and plains are inhabited by Tūrks, Aimāks, and Arabs. In the city and the greater part of the villages, the population consists of Tājiks (called "Sarts" by Babur). Many other of the villages and districts are occupied by Pashāis, Parāchis, Tājiks, Berekis, and Afghans. In the hill-country to the west, reside the Hazāras and Nukderis. Among the Hazāra and Nukderi tribes, there are some who speak the Moghul language. In the hill-country to the north-east lies Kaferistān, such as Kattor and Gebrek. To the south is Afghanistān... There are eleven or twelve different languages spoken in Kābul: Arabic, Persian, Tūrki, Moghuli, Hindi, Afghani, Pashāi, Parāchi, Geberi, Bereki, and Lamghāni...[24]—Babur, 1525
The city was often contested by Babur's sons, especially Kamran Mirza and Humayun. Humayun was chased away from Hindustan by Sher Shah Suri but was able to return in November 1545 with Persian aid, where he is believed to have taken Kabul without any blood-spills. Kamran managed to retake Kabul twice but he remained a hated figure to the residents of the city, as his periods of rule involved atrocities against large numbers of them. Following his third and final ejection from Kabul in 1552, Kamran fled and was captured in Punjab by a general of Islam Shah Suri, ruler of the Sur Empire in northern India. Kamran was handed over to Humayun in Kabul, who made him blind.
[edit] Afghan nation-state
[edit] Durrani Empire
In 1826, the kingdom was claimed by Dost Mohammad Khan and taken from him by the British Indian Army in 1839, who installed the unpopular Shah Shuja. An 1841 local uprising resulted in the loss of the British mission and the subsequent Massacre of Elphinstone's Army of approximately 16,000 foreign forces, which included civilians and camp followers on their retreat from Kabul to Jalalabad. In 1842 the British returned, plundering Bala Hissar in revenge before fleeing back to British India (now Pakistan). Dost Mohammed returned to the throne.
The British and Indian forces invaded in 1878 as Kabul was under Sher Ali Khan's rule, but the British residents were again massacred. The invaders again came in 1879 under General Roberts, partially destroying Bala Hissar before retreating to British India (Pakistan). Amir Abdur Rahman Khan was left in control of the country.
In the early 20th century King Amanullah Khan rose to power. His reforms included electricity for the city and schooling for girls. He drove a Rolls-Royce, and lived in the famous Darul Aman Palace. In 1919, after the Third Anglo-Afghan War, Amanullah announced Afghanistan's independence from foreign affairs at Eidgah Mosque. In 1929 Ammanullah Khan left Kabul due to a local uprising orchestrated by Habibullah Kalakani and Ammanullah's brother, Nader Khan, took control over the nation. King Nader Khan was assassinated in 1933 and the throne was left to his 19-year-old son, Zahir Shah, who became the long lasting King of Afghanistan.
In 1955, the Soviet Union forwarded $100 million in credit to Afghanistan, which financed public transportation, airports, a cement factory, mechanized bakery, a five-lane highway from Kabul to the Soviet border and dams.[31]
In the 1960s, Kabul developed a cosmopolitan mood. The first Marks & Spencer store in Central Asia was built there. Kabul Zoo was inaugurated in 1967, which was maintained with the help of visiting German zoologists. Many foreigners began flocking to Kabul with the increase in global air travels around that time. The nation's tourism industry was starting to pick up rapidly for the first time. Kabul experimented with liberalization, dropping laws requiring women to wear the burka, restrictions on speech and assembly loosened which led to student politics in the capital.[32] Socialist, Maoist and liberal factions demonstrated daily in Kabul while more traditional Islamic leaders spoke out against the failure to aid the Afghan countryside.[32] A 1969 a religious uprising at the Pul-e Khishti Mosque protested the Soviet Union's increasing influence over Afghan politics and religion. This protest ended in the arrest of many of its organizers, including Mawlana Faizani, a popular Islamic scholar. In the early 1970s Radio Kabul began to broadcast in other languages besides Pashtun which helped to unify those minorities that often felt marginalized, however this was put to a stop with Daoud's revolution in 1973.[33]
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In the later years of his leadership, Daoud began to shift favour from the Soviet Union to Islamic nations, expressing admiration for their wealth from oil and expecting economic aid from them to quickly surpass that of the Soviet Union.[36] The slow speed of reforms however frustrated both the Western educated elite and the Russian trained army officers.[37] Daoud forced many communists out of his government, which unified the various communist factions within the city.[37]
[edit] Communist revolution and Soviet invasion
After the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, on December 24, 1979, the Red Army occupied the capital. They turned the city into their command centre during the 10-year conflict between the Soviet-allied government and the Mujahideen rebels. Kabul remained relatively calm during that period as fighting was mostly in the countryside and in other major cities. The American Embassy in Kabul closed on January 30, 1989.
[edit] Foreign interference and war in Kabul
- "The sovereignty of Afghanistan was vested formally in "The Islamic State of Afghanistan", an entity created in April 1992, after the fall of the Soviet-backed Najibullah government. ... With the exception of Gulbuddin Hekmatyar's Hezb-e Islami, all of the parties ... were ostensibly unified under this government in April 1992. ... Hekmatyar's Hezb-e Islami, for its part, refused to recognize the government for most of the period discussed in this report and launched attacks against government forces and Kabul generally. ... Hekmatyar continued to refuse to join the government. Hekmatyar's Hezb-e Islami forces increased their rocket and shell attacks on the city. Shells and rockets fell everywhere."[40]
- "Pakistan was keen to gear up for a breakthrough in Central Asia. ... Islamabad could not possibly expect the new Islamic government leaders, especially [Ahmad Shah] Massoud (who had always maintained his independence from Pakistan), to subordinate their own nationalist objectives in order to help Pakistan realize its regional ambitions. ... Had it not been for the ISI's logistic support and supply of a large number of rockets, Hekmatyar's forces would not have been able to target and destroy half of Kabul."[42]
- "[O]utside forces saw instability in Afghanistan as an opportunity to press their own security and political agendas."[44]
- "Rare ceasefires, usually negotiated by representatives of Ahmad Shah Massoud, Sibghatullah Mojaddedi or Burhanuddin Rabbani (the interim government), or officials from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), commonly collapsed within days," writes Human Rights Watch.[40]
The Taliban started shelling Kabul in early 1995 but were defeated by forces of the Islamic State government under Ahmad Shah Massoud.[48] see video Amnesty International, referring to the Taliban offensive, wrote in a 1995 report:
The Taliban's early victories in 1994 were followed by a series of defeats that resulted in heavy losses.[51] Pakistan provided strong support to the Taliban.[42][52] Many analysts like Amin Saikal describe the Taliban as developing into a proxy force for Pakistan's regional interests which the Taliban decline.[42]"This is the first time in several months that Kabul civilians have become the targets of rocket attacks and shelling aimed at residential areas in the city."[48]
[edit] Taliban Emirate vs United Front
After the fall of Kabul to the Taliban on September 27, 1996,[55] The Taliban, without any real court or hearing, cut people's hands or arms off when accused of theft. Taliban hid-squads from the infamous "Ministry for Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice" watched the streets conducting arbitrary brutal and public beatings of people when they saw what they considered as unislamic behavior.[54] The Taliban also tortured ex-President Najibullah and his brother to death and lynched their dead corpses publicly."To PHR’s knowledge, no other regime in the world has methodically and violently forced half of its population into virtual house arrest, prohibiting them on pain of physical punishment."[54]
Ahmad Shah Massoud withdrew his forces from Kabul to the northern regions of Afghanistan where he created the United Front (Northern Alliance) against the Taliban that were preparing offensives against the remaining areas under the control of Massoud and those under the control of regional leaders. see video According to a 55-page report by the United Nations, the Taliban, while trying to consolidate control over northern and western Afghanistan, committed systematic massacres against civilians.[56][57] U.N. officials stated that there had been "15 massacres" between 1996 and 2001.[56][57] They also said, that "[t]hese have been highly systematic and they all lead back to the [Taliban] Ministry of Defense or to Mullah Omar himself."[56][57] The Taliban especially targeted people of Shia religious or Hazara ethnic background.[56][57] Upon taking Mazar-i-Sharif in 1998, about 4,000 civilians were executed by the Taliban and many more reported tortured.[58][59] Many civilians fled to the area of Ahmad Shah Massoud. The National Geographic concluded: "The only thing standing in the way of future Taliban massacres is Ahmad Shah Massoud."[60]
Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf – then as Chief of Army Staff – was responsible for sending thousands of Pakistanis to fight alongside the Taliban and Bin Laden against the United Front.[52][60][61][50] In total there were believed to be 28,000 Pakistani nationals fighting inside Afghanistan.[50] From 1996 to 2001 the Al Qaeda of Osama Bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri furthermore became a state within the Taliban state.[62] Bin Laden sent Arab recruits to join the fight against the United Front.[63][62] Of roughly 45,000 Pakistani, Taliban and Al Qaeda soldiers fighting against the forces of Massoud only 14,000 were Afghan.[64][50]
Kabul remained under Taliban control until November 2001.
[edit] Recent history (2001–present)
[edit] Climate
Kabul has a semi-arid climate (Köppen climate classification BSk) with precipitation concentrated in the winter (sometimes falling as snow) and spring months. Summer has very low humidity, providing relief from the heat. Autumn features warm nights and sharply cooler evenings. Winters are cold, with a January daily average of −2.3 °C (27.9 °F). Spring is the wettest time of the year, though temperatures are generally amiable. Sunny conditions dominate year-round. The annual mean temperature is 12.1 °C (53.8 °F).| Climate data for Kabul (1956–1983) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 4.5 (40.1) | 5.5 (41.9) | 12.5 (54.5) | 19.2 (66.6) | 24.4 (75.9) | 30.2 (86.4) | 32.1 (89.8) | 32.0 (89.6) | 28.5 (83.3) | 22.4 (72.3) | 15.0 (59) | 8.3 (46.9) | 19.6 (67.3) |
| Average low °C (°F) | −7.1 (19.2) | −5.7 (21.7) | 0.7 (33.3) | 6.0 (42.8) | 8.8 (47.8) | 12.4 (54.3) | 15.3 (59.5) | 14.3 (57.7) | 9.4 (48.9) | 3.9 (39) | −1.2 (29.8) | −4.7 (23.5) | 4.3 (39.7) |
| Precipitation mm (inches) | 34.3 (1.35) | 60.1 (2.366) | 67.9 (2.673) | 71.9 (2.831) | 23.4 (0.921) | 1.0 (0.039) | 6.2 (0.244) | 1.6 (0.063) | 1.7 (0.067) | 3.7 (0.146) | 18.6 (0.732) | 21.6 (0.85) | 312.0 (12.283) |
| Avg. precipitation days | 2 | 3 | 10 | 11 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 48 |
| Sunshine hours | 176.7 | 180.8 | 204.6 | 234.0 | 310.0 | 354.0 | 356.5 | 341.0 | 303.0 | 282.1 | 252.0 | 182.9 | 3,177.6 |
| Source: HKO [65] | |||||||||||||
[edit] Administration
The Mayor of the city is selected by the President of Afghanistan, who engages in planning and environmental work. The police belong to the Afghan Ministry of Interior and are arranged by city districts. The Chief of Police is selected by the Minister of Interior and is responsible for law enforcement and security of the city.
[edit] Areas of the city
Below are some of Kabul's neighborhoods listed:
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[edit] Demographics
The population of the city reflects the general multi-ethnic, multi-cultural, and multi-lingual characteristics of Afghanistan. There is no official government report on the exact ethnic make-over but a map appeared in the November 2003 issue of the National Geographic magazine showing Tajiks 45%, Hazaras 25%, Pashtuns 25%, Uzbek 2%, Baloch 1%, Turkmen 1%, and Hindu 1%.[69] Pashto and Dari (Persian) are the most widely used languages in the area[68][70], although Dari serves as the lingua franca and many in the city are bilingual.
Nearly all the people of Kabul are Muslim, which includes the majority Sunnis and minority Shias. A small number of Sikhs, Hindus, and Christians[citation needed] are also found in the city. For example, Bollywood actress Celina Jaitley is Hindu who was born in Kabul. There is only one Jew in Kabul, whose name is Zablon Simintov.
[edit] Transport
Bus service to most major cities of the country is available in Kabul although they are not as safe, especially for foreigners. The city's public buses (Milli Bus / "National Bus") take commuters on daily routes to many destinations. The service currently has approximately 800 buses but is gradually expanding and upgrading with more buses being added. The Kabul bus system has recently discovered a new source of revenue in whole-bus advertising from MTN similar to "bus wrap" advertising on public transit in more developed nations. There is also an express bus that runs from the city centre to Kabul International Airport for Safi Airways passengers. There are also yellow taxicabs just about anywhere in and around the city.
Private vehicles are on the rise in Kabul, with Toyota, Nissan, and other dealerships in the city. People are buying new cars as the roads and highways are being improved. Most drivers in Kabul prefer owning a Toyota Corolla, one of Afghanistan's most popular car. It has even been reported that up to 90% of cars in Kabul are Corollas.[71][72] With the exception of motorcycles many vehicles in the city operate on LPG. Gas stations are mainly private-owned but the fuel comes from Iran. Bikes on the road are a common sight in the city.
[edit] Communications
There are a number of post offices throughout the city. Package delivery services like FedEx, TNT N.V., and DHL are also available.
The city has many local-language radio stations, including Pashto and Dari, as well as some programs in the English language. The Afghan government has become increasingly intolerant of Indian channels and the un-Islamic culture they bring, and has threatened to ban them.
[edit] Education
- Habibia High School, a British-Afghan school founded in 1903 by King Habibullah Khan.
- Lycée Esteqlal, a Franco-Afghan school founded in 1922.
- Amani High School, a German-Afghan school for boys founded in 1924.
- Aisha-i-Durani School, a German-Afghan school for girls.
[edit] Universities in Kabul
- Kabul University
- Kabul Medical University
- Polytechnical University of Kabul (Kabul Polytechnic)
- American University of Afghanistan
- Higher Education Institute of Karwan
- Rana Institute of Higher Education
- Bakhtar Institute of Higher Education
- Dawat University
- National Military Academy of Afghanistan
[edit] Places of interest
The old part of Kabul is filled with bazaars nestled along its narrow, crooked streets. Cultural sites include the Afghan National Museum, notably displaying an impressive statue of Surya excavated at Khair Khana, the ruined Darul Aman Palace, the Mausoleum of Emperor Babur and Chehlstoon Park, the Minar-i-Istiqlal (Column of Independence) built in 1919 after the Third Afghan War, the mausoleum of Timur Shah Durrani, and the imposing Id Gah Mosque (founded 1893). Bala Hissar is a fort destroyed by the British in 1879, in retaliation for the death of their envoy, now restored as a military college. The Minaret of Chakari, destroyed in 1998, had Buddhist swastika and both Mahayana and Theravada qualities.Other places of interest include Kabul City Center, which is Kabul's first shopping mall, the shops around Flower Street and Chicken Street, Wazir Akbar Khan district, Babur Gardens, Kabul Golf Club, Kabul Zoo, Shah Do Shamshera and other famous Mosques, the Afghan National Gallery, Afghan National Archive, Afghan Royal Family Mausoleum, the OMAR Mine Museum, Bibi Mahroo Hill, Kabul Cemetery, and Paghman Gardens.
Tappe-i-Maranjan is a nearby hill where Buddhist statues and Graeco-Bactrian coins from the 2nd century BC have been found. Outside the city proper is a citadel and the royal palace. Paghman and Jalalabad are interesting valleys north and east of the city.
- Airports
- Parks
- Bagh-e Babur (Babur Gardens)
- Bāghi Bālā Park
- Lake Qargha
- Zarnegar Park
- Shar-e Naw Park
- Bagh-e Zanana
- Chaman-e-Hozori
- Bebi Mahroo Park
- Mosques
- Mausoleums
- Mausoleum of Tamim Ansar
- Mausoleum of Timur Shah Durrani
- Mausoleum of Abdur Rahman Khan
- Mausoleum of Zahir Shah and Nadir Shah
- Museums
- National Museum of Afghanistan
- National Gallery of Afghanistan
- Negaristani Milli
- Hotels
- Marriott (under construction)
- Serena Hotel
- Inter-Continental
- Safi Landmark Hotel[74]
- Golden Star Hotel[75]
- Heetal Plaza Hotel[76]
- Parwan Hotel[citation needed]
[edit] Reconstruction and developments
A small sized indoor shopping mall (Kabul City Center) with the 4-star Safi Landmark Hotel on the top six floors opened in 2005. The Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) opened a 5-star Serena Hotel in the same year, while the landmark Inter-Continental has been refurbished. The AKDN was also involved in the restoration work of the Bagh-e Babur (Babur Gardens). Another 5-star Marriott Hotel is under construction next to the U.S. Embassy. A number of high rise buildings are being planned and constructed across Kabul, as part of the attempt to modernize the city.[77]
An initial concept design called the City of Light Development, envisioned by Dr. Hisham N. Ashkouri, for the development and the implementation of a privately based investment enterprise has been proposed for multi-function commercial, historic and cultural development within the limits of the Old City of Kabul, along the southern side of the Kabul River and along Jade Meywand Avenue,[78] revitalizing some of the most commercial and historic districts in the City. Also incorporated in the design is a new complex for the National Museum of Afghanistan. A Memorandum of understanding has been signed between Dr. Ashkouri and Said Tayeb Jawad to undertake the project and to develop it for actual implementation over the next 20 years. Dr. Ashkouri has also presented the plan to President Karzai and has received a letter of support from the president and the Minister of Urban Development.
About 4 miles (6 km) from downtown Kabul, in Bagrami, a 22-acre (9 ha) wide industrial complex has completed with modern facilities, which will allow companies to operate businesses there. The park has professional management for the daily maintenance of public roads, internal streets, common areas, parking areas, 24 hours perimeter security, access control for vehicles and persons. Another phase with additional 27 acres (11 ha) of land will be added immediately proceeding the first phase.[79] A $25 million Coca-Cola bottling plant was opened in 2006. President Hamid Karzai formally opened the facility in an attempt to attract more foreign investment in the city.
In late 2007 the government announced that all the residential houses situated on mountains would be removed within a year so that trees and other plants can be grown on the hills. The plan calls for a greener city and to provide residents with a more suitable place to live, on a flat surface. Once implemented it will provide water supply and electricity to each house. All the city roads will also be paved under the plan, which is to solve transportation problems.[80]
[edit] NGOs
Numerous non-governmental organizations (NGOs), both national and international, are based in Kabul, conducting various activities to assist development in Afghanistan and provide humanitarian relief to the many victims which 30 years of war have produced.Afghanistan Information Management Services (AIMS) provides software development, capacity development, information management, and project management services to the Afghan Government and other NGOs, thereby supporting their on-the-ground activities.
The We Are the Future (WAF) Center is a child care centre whose aim is to give children a chance to live their childhoods and develop a sense of hope. The centre is managed under the direction of the mayor's office and the international NGO. Glocal Forum serves as the fundraiser, program planner and coordinator for the WAF centre. Launched in 2004, the program is the result of a strategic partnership between the Glocal Forum, the Quincy Jones Listen Up Foundation and Mr. Hani Masri, with the support of the World Bank, UN agencies and major companies.