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Ghazni غزنى
Capital  • Coordinates	Ghazni  • ~° N ~° E
Population (2002)  • Density	931,000  • /km²
Area	22,915 km²
Time zone	UTC+4:30
Main language(s)	Persian (Dari and Hazaragi dialects) Pashto

Ghazni (Pashto/Persian: غزنى) is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. It is in the east of the country. Its capital is Ghazni. The province lies on the important Kabul to Kandahar road, and has historically functioned as an important trade center between those two major cities.

This province was once the seat of the mighty Ghaznavid Empire, that ruled all of Persia and its eastern territories.

Some Sikhs and Hindus too live in Ghazni province. During the Taliban regime they fled the country, but with the current administration they have returned to Ghazni city.

Like many southern Afghan provinces, Ghazni has a precarious security situation caused by Taliban insurgents, who are reported to control most of the rural areas outside of the capital [1], and are heavily involved in attacks on provincial schools and government infrastructure. The province has avoided the outright warfare seen in other areas of Afghanistan such as Helmand Province and Kandahar Province, but that is due more to political expediency and the tactical plans of the NATO ISAF force than the existence of a stable security situation in the province. Ex-Governor Taj Mohammad was killed by millitants in 2006 after being appointed police chief of the province with a mandate to quell the power of the Taliban. On the same day there was an unsuccessful attempt on the life of the current Governor, Sher Alam Ibrahimi [2]. There is an American Provincial Reconstruction Team base located in Ghazni City.

In 2006, the provincial government banned the riding of motorcycles and scooters in the province, those being the preferred transportation of Taliban fighters. In response, the provincial Taliban banned the use of cars in the province. The dual bans led to the virtual elimination of all motor vehicle traffic in the province.

In recent years, Ghazni has been beset by droughts, heavy snow, and flooding, all at different times [3]. During the periods of drought, many parts of the province, especially Ghazni City, saw heavy building in the flood plains of the province's rivers. Flooding caused by heavy rain and snow in recent years have taken heavy tolls in property in lives in these newly constructed areas [4].

The current Governor of the province is Miraj Pathan.

Note:This is the old district map.

Ghazni is made up of 19 districts (district capitals are given in parentheses).

(statistics taken from http://www.aims.org.af )

Malistan, Jaghuri, Nawur, parts of Qarabagh, Dih Yak and Jaghatu are part of the Hazara area known as the Hazarajat.

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Provinces of Afghanistan

Badakhshan • Badghis • Baghlan • Balkh • Bamyan • Daykundi • Farah • Faryab • Ghazni • Ghor • Helmand • Herat • Jowzjan • Kabul • Kandahar • Kapisa • Khost • Kunar • Kunduz • Laghman • Lowgar • Nangarhar • Nimruz • Nurestan • Oruzgan • Paktia • Paktika • Panjshir • Parvan • Samangan • Sar-e Pol • Takhar • Wardak • Zabul

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