Background and History of Afghanistan

Geography

Afghanistan is a small country equivalent in size to that of the State of Taxes in the United States. A landlocked country, Afghanistan is bordered by Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, in the north; Xinjiang province of China, in the northeast; Iran in the west, and Pakistan in the east. The capital city, Kabul, is one of the largest cities and had an estimated population of 1.5 million in 1996. Other major cities with a population of 50,000 to 200,000 people include Harat, Kandahar, Mazar-I- Sharif, Jalalabad and Kundoz. Estimates of the total population of Afghanistan range between 15-20 million, including refugees in other countries.

Religion and Ethnic Groups

More than 99.9% of Afghan people are Muslim (nearly 80% is Sunni and 20% Shiite Muslims). Non-Muslim groups, including Hindus, Sikhs, and Jews make up less than 0.1% of the population. Although the vast majority of its people share a common religion, Afghanistan is very diverse in terms of language and ethnicity. Among the several distinct ethnic groups living in Afghanistan are the Pashtuns (40-45%), Tajiks (25-30% ), Hazaras (10-12%) and Uzbeks, Turkomens, Kirghiz, Kazakh (10%). The two official languages are Dari/Persian and Pashto.

Climate

The climate in Afghanistan is dry with four seasons, including hot summers, cold winters and heavy snow year-round in the mountainous regions.

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