Kabul, is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan, with population of about 3 million people. It is an economic and cultural center, situated 5,900 feet (1,800 metres) above-sea-level in a narrow valley, wedged between the Hindu Kush mountains along the Kabul River. Kabul is linked with Ghazni, Kandahar, Herat and Mazari Sharif via a long beltway (circular highway) that stretches across Afghanistan. It is also linked by highways with Pakistan to the southeast and Tajikistan to the north.
Kabul's main products include ordnance, cloth, furniture, and beet sugar, though, since 1978, a state of nearly continuous war has limited the economic productivity of the city.
Kabul is over 3,000 years old. Many empires long fought over the city, due to its strategical location along the trade routes of Southern and Central Asia. In 1504, Babur made it the capital of his Moghul Empire. Finally, in 1776, Timur Shah Durrani made it the capital of modern Afghanistan.[3] The city's population is multicultural and multi-ethnic, reflecting the diversity of Afghanistan and nearby regions, with Tajiks, Pashtuns, Hazaras, Uzbeks and others. Kabul is in the process of being rebuilt following decades of wars and destruction.
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Central Kabul seen from atop "TV Hill"
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