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Bazarak بازارک
City
Officials visit Bazarak District in 2011
BazarakLocation in Afghanistan
Coordinates: 35°18′46″N 69°30′57″E / 35.31278°N 69.51583°E / 35.31278; 69.51583
Country	Afghanistan
Province	Panjshir
Elevation	1,991 m (6,532 ft)
Population
• City	24,723
• Urban	24,723
Time zone	UTC+4:30 (Afghanistan Standard Time)

Bāzārak is the provincial capital of Panjshir Province, in the Panjshir Valley of northeastern Afghanistan. It is a small city with a total population of 24,723 as of 2015 and has only three police districts (nahias). The total land area of Bazarak city is 9,122 hectares and there are 2,747 dwellings in the city. It comprises six villages: Khanez, Jangalak, Malaspa, Parandeh and Rahmankhel. The tomb of Ahmad Shah Massoud, known as the "Lion of Panjshir", is located in Bazarak.

History

During the Taliban rule of Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001, Bazarak and the Panjshir Valley region was a stronghold for the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance group of former mujahideen, led by town native Ahmad Shah Massoud.

Bazarak is classified as an Urban Village. Developed land such as housing, institutions and agriculture is clustered along the Panjshir River. Institutional land accounts for almost 30% of built-up land area, but the large majority of the total land is barren (84%).

Following the 2021 Taliban offensive, Bazarak became the only provincial capital not to fall under Taliban rule, becoming the headquarters of the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan. However, the Taliban claimed to have captured the city on 5 September 2021.

On 6 September 2021, Taliban senior spokesperson Zabiullah Mujahid claimed to have captured all of Panjshir, including the provincial capital, on Twitter, and pictures on social media showed Taliban fighters standing in front of the gate of the Panjshir provincial governor's compound. The Taliban hoisted their flag at a government building there. However, despite reports, the extent of the Taliban's control in Panjshir was disputed by the NRF spokesman and foreign relations head Ali Maisam Nazary, who claimed on 9 September 2021 that despite making "tactical" withdrawals from some areas, 60% of the province was still under control of the NRF. Tasnim News Agency reporters who visited the area on 11 September 2021 also confirmed the presence of not only Taliban fighters but also NRF fighters in Panjshir. Around late October, a subsequent visit by Radio Télévision Suisse and Journeyman Pictures into Bazarak would report an armed confrontation between the Taliban and the NRF occurring in an undisclosed location in the mountains surrounding Bazarak, reporting that resistance forces gained the upper hand, thus confirming that the NRF is still active near Bazarak and in Panjshir despite claims of inactivity by local Taliban officials.

On 15 August 2022, the one year anniversary since the fall of Afghanistan, the NRF launched an offensive in Panjshir, reportedly capturing seven villages in the Bazarak, Dara, Annaba, Shotul, Paryan, and Khenj districts, while surrounding Taliban fighters in several positions.

Climate

According to the Köppen climate classification system, Bazarak features a warm-summer humid continental climate (Dsb) with pleasant summers and cold winters. The annual precipitation is distributed mostly in the winter. The average annual temperature is 4.3 °C (40 °F).

See also

• Panjshir Province

References

1. ^ "The State of Afghan Cities Report 2015, volume 1". Archived from the original on 31 October 2015. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
2. ^ "The State of Afghan Cities Report 2015, volume 2". Archived from the original on 31 October 2015. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
3. Gall, Sandy (2021). Afghan Napoleon: The Life of Ahmad Shah Massoud. London: Haus Publishing. pp. 20–21, 22. ISBN 978-1-913368-22-7.
4. "Taliban Claim Control Over Panjshir Valley, but Resistance Vows to Fight On". The New York Times. Retrieved 2021-09-06.
5. "Leader of Afghan holdout region says he is ready to talk with Taliban". Reuters. 2021-09-06. Retrieved 2021-09-06.
6. "Taliban Say Panjshir Valley "Completely Captured"". NDTV. Retrieved 2021-09-06.
7. "NRF says 60 percent of Afghanistan's Panjshir still under control, Ahmad Massoud and Amrullah Saleh alive". First Post. 9 September 2021. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
8. "Exclusive: Taliban Claim to Have Conquered Entire Panjshir". Tasnim News Agency. 12 September 2021. Retrieved 2021-09-16.
9. hazco.co.uk. "Afghanistan: Resisting the Taliban". www.journeyman.tv. Retrieved 2021-11-17.
10. صبح, هشت (2022-08-15). "یک‌ساله‌گی سقوط کشور؛ نیروهای جبهه مقاومت‌ ملی هفت روستا را در پنجشیر تصرف کردند". روزنامه ۸صبح (in Persian). Archived from the original on 2022-08-15. Retrieved 2022-08-16.
11. "Bazarak monthly weather averages". Retrieved 31 May 2023.

v t e Panjshir Province
Capital: Bazarak
Districts	Anaba Bazarak Darah Khenj Paryan Rokha Shotul
Landforms	Anjuman Pass Mir Samir Panjshir River Panjshir Valley
Other	Governors Omarz Panjshir University

• Populated places in Panjshir Province
• Provincial capitals in Afghanistan