Kandahar: Difference between revisions

| leader_name = Mohammadmula Yousaf Wafasherin

| postal_code = 38XX

| website = {{URL|https://kandahar-m.gov.af}}

'''[[Kandahar]]''' ({{IPAc-en|lang|ˈ|k|æ|n|d|ə|h|ɑ:r}}; {{Lang-Langx|ps| {{nq|کندهار}}|translit=Kandahār}}; {{Lang-Langx|prs| {{nq|قندهار}}|translit=Qandahār}}) is a city in [[Afghanistan]], located in the south of the country on the [[Arghandab River]], at an elevation of {{cvt|1010|m|ft|sp=us}}. It is Afghanistan's [[List of cities in Afghanistan|second largest city]], after [[Kabul]], with a population of about 614,118.<ref name="auto">{{cite web |title=The State of Afghan Cities report2015 |url=http://unhabitat.org/books/soac2015/ |ref=UN-Habitat |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151031111515/http://unhabitat.org/books/soac2015/ |archive-date=31 October 2015}}</ref> It is the capital of [[Kandahar Province]] and the centre of the larger cultural region called [[Loy Kandahar]].

Kandahar is the founding city and spiritual center of the [[Taliban]]. Despite the capital of [[Afghanistan]] being Kabul, where the government administration is based, Kandahar is the seat of power in Afghanistan as the [[Supreme Leader of Afghanistan|supreme leader]] and his spiritual advisers are based there. Kandahar has therefore been called the de facto capital of [[Afghanistan]], though the Taliban maintain Kabul is the capital.<ref>{{cite news |author1=Ikramullah Ikram |author2=Abubakar Siddique |title=Southern Afghan City Becomes De Facto Capital As Taliban Chief Tightens Grip On Power |url=https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-kandahar-taliban-akhundzada-capital/32369212.html |access-date=11 May 2023 |work=[[Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty]] |date=18 April 2023 |archive-date=11 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230511031105/https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-kandahar-taliban-akhundzada-capital/32369212.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Ernst Herzfeld]] claimed Kandahar perpetuated the name of the [[Indo-Parthian]] king [[Gondophares]], who re-founded the city under the name Gundopharron.<ref>Ernst Herzfeld, ''Archaeological History of Iran'', London, Oxford University Press for the British Academy, 1935, p.63; Ernst Herzfeld, ''The Persian Empire: Studies in Geography and Ethnography of the Ancient Near East'', Wiesbaden, Steiner, 1968, p.335.</ref> However, modern historians and linguists generally find this derivation implausible.<ref name="Hill2009"/>

An alternative [[etymology]] derives the name of the city from [[Gandhara]],<ref name="Hobson Jobson Dictionary">[https://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/philologic/getobject.pl?c.0:1:390.hobson Hobson Jobson Dictionary] {{Webarchive |url=https://archive.today/20120707232441/http://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/philologic/getobject.pl?c.0:1:390.hobson |date=7 July 2012 }}; ''The Practical Sanskrit-English Dictionary'', Vaman Shivram Apte, Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi, India, 1975, {{ISBN|81-208-0567-4}}; P. Bernard, "Une probleme de toponymie antique dans l'Asie centrale: les noms anciens de Qandahar", ''Studia Iranica'', tome 3 (fasc. 2) 1974, 171–185.</ref>{{Unreliable source?|date=October 2024}} the name of an ancient Hindu-Buddhist kingdom located between the [[Kunar River]] and Abaseen River, centred on the [[Peshawar Valley]].<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-HeJS3nE9cAC&q=gandhara+kunar+river&pg=PA135 |title=The Greeks in Bactria and India |isbn=9781108009416 |last1=Tarn |first1=William Woodthorpe |date=24 June 2010 |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |access-date=25 June 2021 |archive-date=25 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210625051153/https://books.google.com/books?id=-HeJS3nE9cAC&q=gandhara+kunar+river&pg=PA135 |url-status=live }}</ref> The name Kandahar ({{lang-langx|sa|कंधार}}) is believed to be linguistically corrupted form of a word [[Gandhāra (kingdom)|Gandhāra]] ({{lang-langx|sa|गंधार}}), which was used between 2000-1700 BCE.<ref>{{cite book |last=Singh |first=Upinder |url= |title=A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India: From the Stone Age to the 12th Century |date= |publisher=[[Longman|Pearson Education India]] |isbn= |location= |page=264 |author-link=Upinder Singh}}</ref>{{Failed verification|date=October 2024}}

Excavations of prehistoric sites by archaeologists such as [[Louis Dupree (professor)|Louis Dupree]] and others suggest that the region around Kandahar is one of the oldest known human settlements known so far.

The now known "[[Old Kandahar]]" was founded in 330 BC by [[Alexander the Great]], near the site of the ancient city of [[Mundigak]] (established around 3000 BC era). Mundigak served as the provincial capital of Arachosia and was ruled by the [[Medes]] followed by the Achaemenids until the arrival of the Macedonians. The main inhabitants of Arachosia were the ''[[Pakthas|Pakhtas]]'',<ref>Map of the [[Median Empire]] from the University of Texas in Austin, showing ''Pactyans'' in what is now Kandahar, Afghanistan&nbsp;... [http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/historical/shepherd/oriental_empire.jpg Link] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20031004232323/http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/historical/shepherd/oriental_empire.jpg |date=4 October 2003 }}</ref> an ancient Indo-Iranian tribe, who maymight behave been among the ancestors of today's [[Pashtuns]]. Kandahar was named ''[[Alexandria in Arachosia|Alexandria]]'', a name given to some cities that Alexander founded during his conquests.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.livius.org/aj-al/alexandria/alexandria_arachosia.html |title=Alexandria in Arachosia |first=Jona |last=Lendering |publisher=LIVIUS – Articles on Ancient History |access-date=9 January 2011 |archive-date=15 June 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100615230642/http://www.livius.org/aj-al/alexandria/alexandria_arachosia.html |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Kandahar has beenwas a frequent target for conquest because of its strategic location in Asia, controlling the main trade route linking the [[Indian subcontinent]] with the [[Middle East]] and [[Central Asia]].<ref>Mentioned in Bopearachchi, "Monnaies Greco-Bactriennes et Indo-Grecques", p52. Original text in paragraph 19 of [http://www.parthia.com/parthian_stations.htm#PARTHIAN_STATIONS Parthian stations] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200531124126/http://www.parthia.com/parthian_stations.htm#PARTHIAN_STATIONS |date=31 May 2020 }}</ref> The territory became part of the [[Seleucid Empire]] after the death of Alexander. It is mentioned by [[Strabo]] that a treaty of friendship was established eventually between the Greeks and the [[Maurya Empire|Mauryas]] (Indians).<ref name=Dupree>{{cite web |url=http://www.aisk.org/aisk/NHDAHGTK05.php |title=An Historical Guide to Kabul&nbsp;– The Story of Kabul |author=[[Nancy Hatch Dupree]] / Aḥmad ʻAlī Kuhzād |publisher=American International School of Kabul |year=1972 |access-date=2010-09-18 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100830031416/http://www.aisk.org/aisk/NHDAHGTK05.php |archive-date=2010-08-30}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.livius.org/man-md/mauryas/mauryas.html |title=Maurya dynasty |first=Jona |last=Lendering |publisher=LIVIUS – Articles on Ancient History |access-date=9 January 2011 |archive-date=26 February 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120226183742/https://www.livius.org/man-md/mauryas/mauryas.html |url-status=dead}}</ref> The city eventually became part of the [[Greco-Bactrian Kingdom]] (250 BC – 125 BC), and continued that way for two hundred years under the later [[Indo-Greek Kingdom]] (180 BC – 10 AD). <!--(text section put into comment: This is not linked to Kandahar but Bagram (?) King [[Menander I]] (165 BC – 135 BC) of the Indo-Greek Kingdom practiced [[Greco-Buddhism]] and is recorded by the [[Mahavamsa]] (Chap. XXIX<ref name="Click chapter XXIX">Full text of the Mahavamsa [http://lakdiva.org/mahavamsa/chapters.html Click chapter XXIX]</ref>) to have sent "a Greek ("[[Yona]]") Buddhist head monk" named [[Mahadharmaraksita]] (literally translated as 'Great Teacher/Preserver of the Dharma') with 30,000 Buddhist monks from "the Greek city of Alasandra" (possibly [[Alexandria in the Caucasus]], as Bagram was known under the Greeks) to Sri Lanka for the dedication of [[Ruwanwelisaya|Great Stupa]] Buddhist temple in [[Anuradhapura]]. -->

Inscriptions made by Emperor Ashoka, a fragment of [[Edicts of Ashoka|Edict 13]] in Greek, as well as a full Edict, written in both Greek and Aramaic has been discovered in Kandahar. It is said to be written in excellent Classical Greek, using sophisticated philosophical terms. In this Edict, Ashoka the great usesused the word [[Eusebeia]] ("[[Piety]]") as the Greek translation for the ubiquitous "[[Dharma]]" of his other Edicts written in [[Prakrit]].

TillUntil the 9th century, Kandahar and other regions ruled by the [[Zunbils]] were considered a part of the [[Indian Subcontinent]], though it was an Eastern Iranic realm which followed [[Zurvanism]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Wink |first=André |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g2m7_R5P2oAC&dq=it+was+clear+that+zunbils+ruled+over+a+predominately+indian+realm&pg=PA114 |title=Al-Hind, the Making of the Indo-Islamic World: Early Medieval India and the Expansion of Islam 7Th-11th Centuries |date=2002 |publisher=BRILL |isbn=978-0-391-04173-8 |pages=114 |language=en |access-date=5 April 2023 |archive-date=5 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230405181852/https://books.google.com/books?id=g2m7_R5P2oAC&dq=it+was+clear+that+zunbils+ruled+over+a+predominately+indian+realm&pg=PA114 |url-status=live }}</ref> In the 7th century [[AD]], [[Islamic conquest of Afghanistan|Arab armies conquered the region]] with the new religion of Islam but were unablefailed to succeedconvert inthe fullyentire converting
population theto populationIslam. The leader of the expedition that conquered the city was [[Abbad ibn Ziyad]], who governed Sijistan between 673 and 681.<ref>{{EI2|article=ʿAbbād b. Ziyād|last=Zetterstéen|first=K. V.|volume=1|page=5}}</ref> In AD 870, [[Ya'qub-i Laith Saffari|Yaqub ibn Layth Saffari]], a local ruler of the [[Saffarids|Saffarid dynasty]], conquered Kandahar and theenvirons rest of the nearby regions in the name of Islam.

It is believed that the [[Zunbils|Zunbil dynasty]] were probably the rulers of the Kandahar region from the 7th century until the late 9th century AD.<ref>Excavations at Kandahar 1974 & 1975 (Society for South Asian Studies Monograph) by Anthony McNicoll.{{blockquote|The Zunbils ruled in the Kandahar area for nearly 250 years until the late 9th century AD.}}</ref> Kandahar was taken by [[Mahmud of Ghazni|Sultan Mahmud]] of [[Ghazni]] in the 11th century followed by the [[Ghurids]] of [[Ghor]].

[[British Raj|British-led Indian forces]] from neighbouring [[British India]] invaded the city in 1839, during the [[First Anglo-Afghan War]], but withdrew in 1842. In November 1855, Dost Mohammad Khan conquered Kandahar. The British and Indian forces returned in 1878 during the [[Second Anglo-Afghan War]]. They emerged from the city in July 1880 to confront the forces of [[Mohammad Ayub Khan (Emir of Afghanistan)|Ayub Khan]], but were defeated at the [[Battle of Maiwand]]. They were again forced to withdraw a few years later, despite winning the [[Battle of Kandahar (1880)|Battle of Kandahar]].

During the 1980s, [[Soviet–Afghan War]], Kandahar city (and the province as a whole) witnessed heavy fighting as it became a centre of resistance as the [[mujahideen]] forces waged a strong [[guerrilla warfare]] against the [[Democratic Republic of Afghanistan|Soviet-backed government]], who tightly held on control of the city. Government and Soviet troops surrounded the city and subjected it to heavy air bombardment in which many civilians lost their lives.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lib.unb.ca/Texts/JCS/bin/get5.cgi?directory=fall99%2F&filename=WESTERMA.htm#39 |title=The Limits of Soviet Airpower: The Failure of Military Coercion in Afghanistan, 1979–89 |work=Edward B. Westermann |publisher=[[University of New Brunswick]] |access-date=9 January 2011 |archive-date=5 June 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110605194158/http://www.lib.unb.ca/Texts/JCS/bin/get5.cgi?directory=fall99%2F&filename=WESTERMA.htm#39 |url-status=live }}</ref> In January 1982 indiscriminate shelling and bombing by the Soviets killed hundreds.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.heritage.org/node/22652/print-display |title=The Heritage Foundation |access-date=11 January 2018 |archive-date=12 January 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180112100834/http://www.heritage.org/node/22652/print-display |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/03/08/world/soviet-reprisals-on-afghans-called-fierce.html |title=Soviet Reprisals on Afghans Called Fierce |newspaper=The New York Times |date=8 March 1982 |last1=Middleton |first1=Drew |access-date=29 January 2018 |archive-date=12 January 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180112044330/http://www.nytimes.com/1982/03/08/world/soviet-reprisals-on-afghans-called-fierce.html |url-status=live }}</ref> 300 civilians were killed during Soviet bombings in July 1984.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1984/07/24/Soviet-forces-bombed-the-city-of-Kandahar-in-southern/5417459489600/ |title=Soviet forces bombed the city of Kandahar in southern |access-date=11 January 2018 |archive-date=12 January 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180112042626/https://www.upi.com/Archives/1984/07/24/Soviet-forces-bombed-the-city-of-Kandahar-in-southern/5417459489600/ |url-status=live }}</ref> It was under siege again in April 1986.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://apnews.com/19a6eb5d553820d0143d100366f9cee1 |title=Soviet-Afghan Offensive Destroys Rebel Stronghold |website=[[Associated Press]] |access-date=7 June 2020 |archive-date=7 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200607155106/https://apnews.com/19a6eb5d553820d0143d100366f9cee1 |url-status=live }}</ref> The city's population was reduced from 200,000 before the war to no more than 25,000 inhabitants, following a months-long campaign of carpet bombing and bulldozing by the Soviets and Afghan communist soldiers in 1987.{{sfn|Kaplan|2008|p=188}} Kandahar International Airport was used by the [[Soviet Army]] during their ten-year troop placement in the country. The city also became a battle ground for the US and Pakistani-backed forces against the pro-Communist government of Afghanistan. After the Soviet withdrawal and the collapse of [[Mohammad Najibullah|Najibullah]]'s government in 1992, Kandahar fell to local mujahideen commander, [[Gul Agha Sherzai]]. However Sherzai lacked authority against other local commanders which led to lawlessness in the city,<ref name="theguardian.com">{{Cite web |urldate=https://www.theguardian.com/world/9 December 2001/dec/09/afghanistan.peterbeaumont |title=Kandahar on brink of chaos as warlords ready for battle |websiteurl=[[TheGuardianhttps://www.theguardian.com]] |date=9 December /world/2001/dec/09/afghanistan.peterbeaumont |accessurl-datestatus=4 January 2019 |archive-date=4 January 2019live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190104175515/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2001/dec/09/afghanistan.peterbeaumont |urlarchive-status=live }}</ref> and fighting in 1993.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zfGlVzNltF8C&pg=PT377 |title=My life with the Taliban |isbn=9789350094136 |last1=Zaeef |first1=Mohammad |date=74 AugustJanuary 2012 |publisher=Hachette India2019 |access-date=74 JuneJanuary 20202019 |archive-datewebsite=1 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210501130520/https://books.google[[TheGuardian.com/books?id=zfGlVzNltF8C&pg=PT377 |url-status=live ]]}}</ref> The city's population was reduced from 200,000 before the war to no more than 25,000 inhabitants, following a months-long campaign of carpet bombing and bulldozing by the Soviets and Afghan communist soldiers in 1987.{{sfn|Kaplan|2008|p=188}}

In August 1994, the [[Taliban]], under [[Mullah Omar|Mohammed Omar Mujahid]], captured Kandahar from commander [[Mullah Naqib]] almost without a fight<ref name="theguardian.com" /> and turned the city into their headquarters. The capture of Afghanistan's second-largest city marked the Taliban's introducedtransformation from a fledgling militia into an Islamic emirate, solidifying their legitimacy as a governing authority through the imposition of a strict forminterpretation of [[Islamic law]],.<ref banningname=":0" formal/> Formal education for girls was banned as well as the consumption of TV, films, music with instrumental [[accompaniments]], and the playing of sports. In December 1999, a hijacked [[Indian Airlines Flight 814]] plane by Pakistani militants loyal to [[Harkat-ul-Mujahideen]] landed at Kandahar International Airport and kept the passengers hostage as part of a demand to release three Pakistani militants from prison in India.

NATO forces expanded the Afghan police force for the prevention of a Taliban comeback in Kandahar, the militants' ''"spiritual birthplace"'' and a strategic key to ward off the [[Taliban insurgency]], as a part of a larger effort that also aimed to deliver services such as electricity and clean drinking water that the Taliban could not provide – encouraging support for the government in a city that was once the Taliban's headquarters. The most significant battle between NATO troops and the Taliban lasted throughout the summer of 2006, culminating in [[Operation Medusa]]. The Taliban failed to defeat the Western troops in open warfare, which marked a turn in their tactics towards [[Improvised explosive device|IED]] emplacement.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/feedarticle/8912934 |title=Removed: news agency feed article |work=the Guardian |date=9 December 2015 |access-date=6 May 2016 |archive-date=20 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920044330/https://www.theguardian.com/info/2015/dec/09/removed-news-agency-feed-article |url-status=live }}</ref> In June 2008, it was reported that over 1,000 [[Sarposa prison tunneling escape of 2011|inmates had escaped]] from [[Sarposa prison]]. In Spring 2010, the province and the city of Kandahar became a target of American operations following ''[[Operation Moshtarak]]'' in the neighbouring [[Helmand Province]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/27/world/asia/27kandahar.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220103/https://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/27/world/asia/27kandahar.html |archive-date=2022-01-03 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Kandahar, a Battlefield Even Before U.S. Offensive |date=27 March 2010 |work=The New York Times |access-date=6 May 2016}}{{cbignore}}</ref> In March 2010, U.S. and NATO commanders released details of plans for the biggest offensive of the war against the Taliban insurgency.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://in.reuters.com/article/southAsiaNews/idINIndia-47354120100331 |title=Q+A – NATO sees Kandahar battle as Afghan turning point |work=Reuters Editorial |date=31 March 2010 |agency=Reuters India |access-date=6 May 2016 |archive-date=20 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920044331/https://www.reuters.com/?edition-redirect=in |url-status=livedead }}</ref>

Decades of war left Kandahar and the rest of the country destroyed and depopulated, but in recent years billions of dollars began pouring in for construction purposes and millions of expats have returned to Afghanistan. New residential areas have been established around the city, and a number of modern- style buildings have been constructed.

{{bar percent|Others*|blue|0.05}}|caption=*{{small|includes [[Sikhs]], [[BahaiBaháʼí Faith|Baháʼí]] and [[Atheists]]}}|left1=Religion|right1=%|title=Religions in Kandahar}}[[File:Tribal and religious leaders in southern Afghanistan.jpg|thumb|upright|A gathering of tribal and religious leaders following a [[shura]] held by [[President of Afghanistan|Afghan President]] [[Hamid Karzai]] in June 2010 to start a dialogue for peace with the Taliban.]]

{{blockquote|sign=|source=|"The major ethnic group living in Khandahar province is Pashtoons. This includes major tribes such as [[Tareen]] or [[Durrani]] sub tribes including [[Barakzai]], [[Popalzai]], [[Alakozai|Alkozai]], [[Achakzai]], [[Ishaqzai]], [[Noorzai]] and [[Alizai (Pashtun tribe)|Alezai]]. [[Pashto language|Pashtu]] is spoken by more than 98% of population and in more than 98% of villages. [[Dari language|Dari]] is spoken in six villages by 4000 people and [[Balochi language|Balochi]] is spoken by 8000 people in two villages. 19000 people in nine villages speak some other unspecified language."<ref name=demography>{{cite web |url=http://www.mrrd-nabdp.org/Provincial%20Profiles/Kandahar%20PDP%20Provincial%20profile.pdf |title=B. Demography and Population |work=[[United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan]] and Afghanistan Statistical Yearbook 2006, Central Statistics Office |publisher=Afghanistan's [[Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development]] |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120321120424/http://www.mrrd-nabdp.org/Provincial%20Profiles/Kandahar%20PDP%20Provincial%20profile.pdf |archive-date=21 March 2012}}</ref>}}