Badakhshan Province

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Badakhshan is one of the northeastern provinces of Afghanistan. It borders Gorno-Badakhshan region of Tajikistan to the north, Xinjiang province of China to the east, and northern provinces of Pakistan to the south, while internally it neighbors the Afghan provinces of Takhar and Panjshir. The provincial capital is Fayzabad, which functions as the main administrative, economic, and cultural center of the province. Historically a part of the broader Badakhshan region, the province has served as an important cultural and commercial crossroads between Central Asia, South Asia, and the Iranian world. It was internationally known for the ancient lapis lazuli mines of Sar-i Sang, which have been exploited for thousands of years and supplied gemstones to ancient civilizations in Mesopotamia, Egypt, and Indus Valley. The Emirate of Badakhshan was annexed into Afghanistan in 1873; the province was established in 1965 after promulgation of 1964 Afghanistan Constitution. Covering an area of approximately...

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