Mazari Sharif

Infobox City in Afghanistan
official_name = Mazari Sharif
native_name =
province_name = Balkh

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image_size = 250px
image_caption = The historic Blue Mosque in Mazari Sharif
latd = 36.700
longd = 67.117
districts =
population_total = 300600|population_as_of = 2006
population_footnote =
population_note = [http://www.cso.gov.af/Census/census.htm Central Statistics Office of Afghanistan]
population_metro =
population_metro_as_of =
population_rank = 4th
population_density_km2 =
area_total_km2 =
elevation_m = 380
numdistricts =
leader_title =
leader_name =
leader_title_2 =
leader_name_2 =

Mazār-e Sharīf (PerB|مزار شریف) is the fourth largest city of Afghanistan, with population of 300,600 people (2006 estimate). It is the capital of Balkh province and is linked by roads to Kabul in the south-east, Herat to the west and Uzbekistan to the north. Mazari Sharif means "Noble Shrine," a reference to the large, blue-tiled sanctuary and mosque in the center of the city known as the Shrine of Hazrat Ali or the "Blue Mosque". It is believed by some Muslims that the site of the tomb of Ali ibn Abi Talib, the cousin and son-in-law of Prophet Muhammad, is in Mazari Sharif. Twelver Shia's however, believe that the real grave of Ali is found within Imam Ali Mosque in Najaf, Iraq, as was disclosed by the Sixth Twelver Shi'a Imam, Ja'far as-Sadiq. [Shaykh Al Mufid. "Kitab al Irshad", Translated by I.K.A Howard. pp.1-6] It is also speculated that underneath the "Blue Mosque" lies the Prophet Zoroaster's tomb.

The dominant language in Mazari Sharif is Persian as well as Uzbek. The city is a major tourist attraction because of its fabulous Muslim and Hellenistic archeological sites. In July 2006, the discovery of new Hellenistic remains was announced. [BBC News "Balkh Monument"... [http://www.bbc.co.uk/persian/afghanistan/story/2006/07/060727_s-balkh-monument.shtml link] ]

History

According to tradition, Mazari Sharif owes its existence to a dream. At the beginning of the 1100s, a local mullah had a dream in which Ali bin Abi Talib, the prophet's cousin and son-in-law and one of the four Rightly Guided Caliphs appeared to reveal that he had been secretly buried near the city of Balkh. After investigation, the Seljuk sultan Sanjar ordered a city and shrine to be built on the spot, where it stood until its destruction by Genghis Khan. Although later rebuilt, Mazar stood in the shadow of its neighbor Balkh, until that city was abandoned in 1866 for health reasons.

The city is the capital of Balkh province, and is Afghanistan's fourth largest city. Its population is dominated by Tajiks, although there are significant Uzbek, Turkmen, Hazara, and Pashtun minorities, the latter being the majority in the city of Balkh. Its geography means that the city has traditionally looked as much north to Bukhara as south to Kabul.

During the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, Mazari Sharif was a strategic base for the Soviet Army, as they used its airport to launch air strikes on Afghan mujahideen. In the early 1990s, after the Soviet Union withdrew from Afghanistan, control of Mazar was contested by the Tajik militias (Jamiat-e Islami of Ahmad Shah Massoud and Rabbani and the Uzbek militia "Jumbesh-e Melli" led by Abdul Rashid Dostum. As a garrison for the communist Afghan army, the city was under the command of Dostum, who mutinied against Najibullah's Kabul regime in 1992 and established the autonomous administration of North Afghanistan with the aid of Massoud.Fact|date=June 2008

Under Dostum's Uzbek "Jumbesh-e Melli" militia from the early 1990s to early 1997, Mazar was an oasis of peace during the civil war, and as the rest of the country disintegrated and was slowly taken over by the Taliban, Dostum strengthened political ties with the newly independent central Asian states and Turkey, printed his own currency and established his own airline. This peace was shattered in May 1997, when he was betrayed by one of his generals, Abdul Malik, and he fled Mazar as the Taliban were getting ready to take the city.

Between May and July 1997, the Taliban unsuccessfully attempted to take Mazar, leading to approximately 2,500 Taliban soldiers being massacred by Abdul Malik and his Shia followers. In retaliation for this incident, the Taliban on August 8, 1998, reportedly returned and led a six-day killing frenzy of Hazaras and other local people. Soon after, the city was occupied and taken over by the Taliban. It was this capture of Mazar that prompted Pakistan's recognition of the Taliban regime.

Following 9/11, Mazar was the first Afghan city to fall to the Afghan Northern Alliance (former militias). The Taliban's retreat from Mazar quickly turned into a rout from the rest of the north and west of Afghanistan. On November 9, 2001 the city was recaptured by the Afghan Northern Alliance after the Battle of Mazar e Sharif with help from the United States. A massacre of Taliban soldiers is alleged to have occurred during the transport of captured enemy east to a prison near Sheberghan. Frontline reported the story in "A Convoy of Death".

Small scale clashes between militias belonging to different commanders persisted throughout 2002, and were the focus of intensive UN peace-brokering and small arms disarmament programme. After some pressure, an office of the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission opened an office in Mazar in April 2003.

Mazar-i Sharif is in full control of the new Afghan central government, which is led by US backed President Hamid Karzai. There are also NATO peacekeeping forces in and around the city providing assistance to the new government. The German lead ISAF Regional Command North is stationed in the Camp Marmal which lies near to the city at an airport. Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) in Mazari Sharif is led by Sweden. Norwegian and Latvian forces also operate out of the Norwegian Camp Nidaros, which is part of the German Camp Marmal.

Climate

The climate in Mazari Sharif is very hot during the summer with daily temperatures of over 40ºC in June and July. The winters are cold with tempatures falling below freezing.

Industry

The local economy is dominated by agriculture and karakul production; small scale oil and gas exploitation have boosted the city's prospects. There is some trade with Uzbekistan via the Afghanistan–Uzbekistan Friendship Bridge over the river Amu Darya.

Local Events

The city is a traditional centre for buzkashi, and the Blue Mosque is the focus of Afghanistan’s Nawroz celebrations.

Directory

The modern city of Mazar-i Sharif is centered around the Shrine of Hazrat Ali. Much restored, it is one of Afghanistan’s most glorious monuments. Outside Mazar-i Sharif lies the ancient city of Balkh.

*Shrines & Mosques
**Shrine of Hazrat Ali

*Hotels
**Serena Hotel (coming soon)

*Universities
**Balkh University

*Airports
**Mazari Sharif Airport

*Banks
**Kabul Bank
**Western Union

See also

*Battle of Qala-i-Jangi

References

* Dupree, Nancy Hatch (1977): "An Historical Guide to Afghanistan". 1st Edition: 1970. 2nd Edition. Revised and Enlarged. Afghan Tourist Organization. [http://www.zharov.com/dupree/index.html Link]

External links

* [http://www.aims.org.af/maps/urban/mazar.pdf Map of Mazari Sharif]
* [http://www.mazar-i-sharif.de Mazar-i-Sharif] (In German)
* [http://www.balkh.com Balkh.com Website]