Helmand (province)

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هلمند
Helmand
Iran Turkmenistan Usbekistan Tadschikistan China de-facto Pakistan (von Indien beansprucht) de-facto Indien (von Pakistan beansprucht) Indien Pakistan Nimrus Helmand Kandahar Zabul Paktika Chost Paktia Lugar Farah Uruzgan Daikondi Nangarhar Kunar Laghman Kabul Kapisa Nuristan Pandschschir Parwan Wardak Bamiyan Ghazni Baglan Ghor Badghis Faryab Dschuzdschan Herat Balch Sar-i Pul Samangan Kundus Tachar Badachschanlocation
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Basic data
Country Afghanistan
Capital Laschkar Gah
surface 58,584 km²
Residents 924,700 (2015)
density 16 inhabitants per km²
ISO 3166-2 AF-HEL
politics
governor Mirza Khan Rahimi
Districts in Helmand Province (as of 2005)
Districts in Helmand Province (as of 2005)

Coordinates: 31 ° 35 '  N , 64 ° 22'  E

Helmand ( Persian هلمند), also Hilmand or Helmund , is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan .

It is located in the south, bordering Pakistan and is currently considered troubled. The capital is Laschkar Gah . The current (2016) governor is Mirza Khan Rahimi. The province has 924,700 inhabitants, the vast majority of whom belong to the Pashtun group.

history

Helmand was formerly part of the Persian province of Sistan , was part of the Afghan province of Kandahar until 1940 and has been an independent province since 1958 (initially under the name Girischk after the city of the same name). On April 30, 1964, it was renamed "Helmand" - after the Hilmend Rud , the longest river in Afghanistan. The Grishk Dam on Hilmend was built by the United States before the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan . It produces electricity and was one of the attempts to modernize the country. In 2005, 20 Taliban tried to blow it up. After the fall of the Taliban in 2001, Helmand has become one of the strongholds of resistance against the Karzai government and the NATO troops on the ground. The opium poppy production by drug barons has also increased significantly.

From March 2007 on, NATO and Afghan troops launched Operation Achilles to drive out the Taliban, which is strong in Helmand. On July 2, 2009, more than 4,000 US soldiers and 650 Afghan soldiers and police officers started Operation Khanjar , the largest military action to date since the invasion of 2002. According to press reports, it is the largest offensive by US marines since the Vietnam War .

In 2010, NATO and Afghan troops launched Operation Mushtarak , the largest offensive of the Afghan war against the Taliban.

In December 2015, the province's lieutenant governor asked for support against the Taliban's advance. At the end of March 2017, Afghan government troops withdrew from the city of Sangin, which is located in the center of the opium region of Helmand, and left the place largely without a fight to the Taliban.

Administrative division

The province of Helmand is divided into the following districts:

Districts of Helmand Province
District Capital population area Number of villages and ethnic groups
Baghran Baghran 129,947 3,124 km 2 38 villages. Pashtun .
Chanashin (Reg) Chanashin 17,333 13,153 km 2 Pashtun
Dischu Dischu 29.005 9,485 km 2 80% Pashtun and 20% Baluch
Garmsir Garmsir 107.153 10,345 km 2 112 villages. Pashtun.
Kajaki Kajaki 119.023 1,976 km 2 220 villages 100% Pashtun
Laschkar Gah Laschkar Gah 201,546 998 km 2 160 villages. Pashtun.
Marjah Marjah 2,300 km 2 95% Pashtun, 5% Tajik and Hazara .
Musa Qala Musa Qala 138,896 1.694 km 2 Pashtun
Nad Ali Nad Ali 235,590 4,564 km 2 90% Pashtun, 10% Turkmen and

Hazara.

Nahri Saraj Girischk 166,827 1.543 km 2 97 villages. Pashtun
Nawa-i Baraksaji Nawa-i Baraksaji 300,000 4135 km 2 350 villages. Pashtun
Nawzad Nawzad 108,258 4,135 km 2 100% Pashtun
Sangin (Reg) Sangin 66.901 508 km 2 99% Pashtun, 1% Hazara, Tajik and Arabic .
Washir Washir 31,476 4,319 km 2 Pashtun

economy

The Kajakai dam, built in 1953, dams the Hilmend Rud river , photo 2004

Helmand mainly consists of deserts and fertile river valleys. The economy is based on around 75% agriculture ( watermelons , ...), 20% animal husbandry and 5% services. It has been overshadowed by the illegal cultivation of opium poppies for the past 15 years.

The drought that has lasted for over 5 years since 1999 caused many traditional wells ( Karez ) to dry up. Around 45% of the population urgently need drinking water . Electric power, schools and clinics are also needed. In addition to securing these basic needs, the repair of the Kajakai Dam and the irrigation systems is a priority.

Helmand has an airfield south of Laschkar Gah ( 31 ° 33 ′ 33 ″  N , 64 ° 21 ′ 51 ″  E ).

Opium poppy cultivation

The cultivation of opium poppies grew fifteen-fold from 1979 to 1999. In 1999, opium poppies were grown on around 44,500 hectares in Helmand Province . Because the Taliban government banned cultivation in July 2000, there was no cultivation in 2001. After the fall of the Taliban government at the end of 2001, 29,950 hectares were planted again in 2002. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) states an acreage of 69,324 hectares for 2006, which increased by almost 50% in 2007 to 102,770 hectares. That is more than half of the total cultivated area of ​​193,000 hectares in Afghanistan. 42.5 kg of opium poppies were harvested per hectare. Opium poppy cultivation (US $ 5,200 per hectare) earns about ten times as much as wheat cultivation (US $ 546 per hectare).

The Taliban have since repealed the ordinance of their former leader Mohammed Omar , who in July 2000 banned the cultivation of opium poppies as a sin. A UNODC survey of almost 3,000 farmers in 1,500 villages comes to the conclusion that 38% of farmers still do not grow opium poppies because it would violate Islam, 28% because it is illegal and 18% because it respect the Shura .

Web links

Commons : Helmand  - collection of images, videos and audio files
  • Helmand Provincial Profile (PDF file), October 29, 2007, on the website of the Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development
  • Joachim Hoelzgen: Hell Helmand - Article about opium cultivation in Helmand at Spiegel.de, September 26, 2006

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Provincial Governors. In: Afghanistan Online. December 20, 2015, accessed January 8, 2016 .
  2. ^ Afghanistan. In: citypopulation.de. Retrieved January 8, 2016 .
  3. ↑ Maulawi Hassan is basically an unknown in any reference I looked through. Difficult to say he is another Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. . March 29, 2009. Retrieved November 24, 2009.
  4. ↑ Tagesschau, July 2, 2009, surprise attack at dawn ( memento of July 3, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
  5. ↑ Taliban on the advance in Helmand province ( Memento of the original from December 22, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.deutschlandfunk.de
  6. ↑ Pamela Constable and Sayed Salahuddin: "Taliban forces seize strategic district in embattled Helmand province" Washington Post, March 23, 2017
  7. ↑ Hillmand Province . In: Government of Afghanistan and United Nations Development Program (UNDP) . Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development . Retrieved December 27, 2012.
  8. ↑ Baghran District ( Memento of the original from July 5, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.mrrd-nabdp.org
  9. ↑ Khanishin District ( Memento of the original from July 5, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.mrrd-nabdp.org
  10. ↑ http://www.aims.org.af/afg/dist_profiles/unhcr_district_profiles/southern/helmand/dishu.pdf
  11. ↑ Disho District ( Memento of the original from July 5, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.mrrd-nabdp.org
  12. ↑ Garmser District ( Memento of the original from July 29, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.mrrd-nabdp.org
  13. ↑ Kajaki District ( Memento of the original from July 5, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.mrrd-nabdp.org
  14. ↑ Archived copy ( Memento of the original from May 17, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.aims.org.af
  15. ↑ Bost District (Re-elected) ( Memento of the original from July 5, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.mrrd-nabdp.org
  16. ↑ Marja District ( Memento of the original from July 5, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.mrrd-nabdp.org
  17. ↑ Mousa Qala District ( Memento of the original from July 5, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.mrrd-nabdp.org
  18. ↑ Nad Ali District ( Memento of the original from July 5, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.mrrd-nabdp.org
  19. ↑ Nahri Saraj District ( Memento of the original from July 5, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.mrrd-nabdp.org
  20. ↑ Nawa District (Re-elected) ( Memento of the original from July 5, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.mrrd-nabdp.org
  21. ↑ http://www.aims.org.af/afg/dist_profiles/unhcr_district_profiles/southern/helmand/naw_zad.pdf
  22. ↑ Nawa District (Re-elected) ( Memento of the original from July 5, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.mrrd-nabdp.org
  23. ↑ Sangin District ( Memento of the original from July 5, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.mrrd-nabdp.org
  24. ↑ Baghran District ( Memento of the original from July 5, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.mrrd-nabdp.org
  25. ↑ a b Regional Rural Economic Regeneration Strategies (RRERS) October 31, 2006: Helmand Province ( Memento of the original from September 21, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF, 76 kB) @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / mrrd.gov.af
  26. ^ Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development 2006: What are the most urgent development projects in Helmand?  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.@1@ 2Template: Dead Link / www.mrrd.gov.af  
  27. ↑ Lashkar Gah (OABT). Ministry of Transport, Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, accessed November 25, 2018 .
  28. ↑ grminternational.com 2004: Alternative Livelihoods in Afghanistan (PDF, 430 kB) table on page 34
  29. ↑ a b UNODC Afghanistan Opium Survey 2007 Executive Summary (PDF, 2.0 MB)
  30. ^ Radio Free Europe October 10, 2007: Poor Helmand Farmers Find Themselves In Eye Of Drug Storm