Zhari District

Zhari is a new district in Kandahar Province, Afghanistan.Alternate spellings include Zheley (due to translation from Pashto) or Zharey. The district was created from territories taken from Maywand and Panjwai districts. The population is 76,000 (2006).

Terrain

Zhari District is located on the North bank of the Arghandab River that runs E-W through Kandahar Province. The general area is sometimes referred to as the Arghandab Valley. The built-up and farmed area of Zhari is approximately 30 km E-W by 8 km N-S couched between the Arghandab and Highway 1. Most buildings are single story mud and brick structures, with narrow, winding roads and walkways. The exceptions are the grape-drying hut that are larger buildings as high as 20m, and which are scattered throughout the countryside. Grapes, Poppies and Marijuana are the most common crops. The farmlands are irrigated by a complex system of wadis running basically parallel with the Arghandab.The area North of Highway 1 is more desert-like with abrupt mountain ranges of approximately 200-400m in height.

Politics

The Shurah is the basic mechanism of government in Zhari. The tribal nature of the district is inseparable from politics, making the decision-making process difficult and time-consuming.

Tribes

Most people in Zhari are ethnic Pashtuns. There are no less than a dozen tribes, the most prevalent of which are the Popalzai and the Ghilzai. There are many nomadic tribes that also pass through the northern areas of Zhari between the Maywand and Arghandab districts.

Sub-Districts

The political geography of Zhari changes over time. Many of the smaller villages bear the name of the local elder. A collection of these smaller villages can be loosely described as a sub-district. Zhari currently has the following sub-districts:
* Nar Kariz,
* Nalgham,
* Sangsar,
* Kolk,
* Siah Choy,
* Sablaghay,
* Pashmul,
* Asequeh,

Conflict

NATO and ISAF continue their efforts to support the Karzai government and quell an insurgency. The Taliban is deeply rooted in Zhari's history and still attempt to exert control from abroad through the system of mullahs and elders. See Resurgence of Taliban. The situation is complicated by the warlords and criminals who also attempt to minimize the government's power in the area to further their own ends.

A 2 a.m. raid on October 18 2006 by NATO helicopters, hunting Taliban fighters, was only half a mile from the scene of September's 2006 Operation Medusa, one of the most ferocious battles between Western forces and insurgents since the ouster of the Taliban regime in 2001. [http://www.southcoasttoday.com/daily/10-06/10-19-06/16world-nation.htm; "Civilians reported killed by airstrikes as NATO hunts Taliban" October 19, 2006] accessed 19 October 2006.]

References