At 377 m altitude, Mazar-e-Sharif, which means «the noble grave», is one of the major religious centres in Afghanistan: This is the tomb of Hazrat Ali, the cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet Muhammad. Every year, thousands of people go to this great city of the North for new year (Nawruz). Capital of Balkh province, Mazar-e-Sharif is a commercial city with its border situation with Uzbekistan. With its population estimated at over million, it is the largest city in the north. The old town has completely disappeared. The great mosque of Ali, with its blue mosaics, is the only point of local interest, although the bazaar also deserves a visit. Mazar is not a beautiful city, but it has another facet of Afghanistan, which characterizes its mix of population, its ceaseless activity and its history.This very active city has not escaped the wave of constructions sweeping Afghanistan since 2001. Thus, the town Hall in Mazar asked several businessmen to build a roundabout. From one day to the next, twelve «roundabouts» appeared in the city, each praising the merits of such a company. It is also the only city where there are so many traffic lights!The population of Mazar is essentially Uzbek. There are also Hazaras and Tajiks. The kitchen is more varied than in the rest of the country. Local specialities are mantou, ashak and bourani. The governor of Balkh Province (chief location: Mazar-e-Sharif) is Atta Mohammed Noor, a former Tajik warlord who competes with the other strong man in the region, Abdul Rachid Dostom.History. In 1220, after the destruction of Balkh by Mongole Khan's Mongolian army, Mazar became the cultural and commercial centre of the region. With the reconstruction of Ali's tomb under the Mongol, Mazar-e-Sharif regained a certain status.In 1886, the city became capital of Afghanistan Turkestan, that is, the provinces of northern Afghanistan.Place of birth of the Northern Alliance, but also strong place of the Russians in the 1980 s, Mazar-e-Sharif was only about kilometres away from the Soviet border. After the evacuation of the Red Army in 1989, Mazar-e-Sharif was under the command of the Uzbek semi-autonomous militia, led by General Abdul Rachid Dostom. In 1989, Dostom led the fierce Uzbek militia «Jowzan», used by Najibullah against the people. But, once again, Dostom returned his jacket. In 1992, he was the first to rebel against Najibullah. This is where his reputation as a traitor came from (later he unifies unifies with Massoud, Hekmatyar, the Taliban then Massoud again, and betrayed all his allies). Dostom's revolt against the government of Kabul in 1992 quickly gave him control over the entire Northern region (he controlled six provinces). This contributed to the fall of the Communist regime. Mazar thus quickly became the capital of the kingdom of Dostom and received a lot of money from the border countries. The 1990 s were rather peaceful in Mazar, and many Afghans came to refuge there, fleeing from the civil war, particularly the destruction of Kabul. Artists, dancers and singers, who could no longer practise in the rest of the country, settled in Mazar and many pilgrims continued to gather there. Mazar, a former prosperous place on the silk road, became a hub for smuggling with Pakistan, Iran and Central Asia. Dostom created his own air line: Air Balkh, connecting Mazar to Dubai. Trade with the countries of Central Asia developed. Ouzbeks's militia in Dostom have a reputation for loving alcohol and women.In Mazar, good health and education services have been established and women go to the faculty. In the 1990 s, 1 800 girls, in skirts and high heels, studied at Balkh University, the only one to operate in the country. For many Afghans, Mazar was at that time the only possible refuge. Abdul Rachid Dostom was then loved: his city had been spared by the 18 years of war and its inhabitants had not suffered the fate of those of the other cities… so far, no destruction. And yet the betrayal of the Uzbek clan soon ended that calm. On 19 May 1997, Malik Palawan, the second of Dostom, asked the Taliban to help him remove his leader. Little by little, the troops of Malik, Uzbeks and Pashtuns combined, dropped the northern provinces one to one. Dostom fled to Uzbekistan and then to Turkey. It was the fall of Mazar, a victory for the Taliban. But Malik had signed a pact with the devil: He did not have the power that Dostom had, far from it, because the Taliban refused to share him with him.Daily life in Mazar took another turn: the Taliban imposed sharia law, women no longer got out on the street and schools stopped. Mazar was under embargo. The rich fled to Central Asia, the others just avec with food supplies. For a city like this, multi-ethnic, the most open and liberal in Afghanistan, these new laws were difficult to implement. At that time, the Taliban wanted to control the whole North.On 28 May 1997, a group of Hazaras refused to allow itself to be disarmed by the Taliban. The fight degenerated and the entire population lifted up. The Taliban were slaughtered badly and were not used to street combat. 600 were killed and more than a thousand were imprisoned. Malik's troops recover four northern provinces: Takhar, Faryab, Jowzjan and Sari Pul, taken only 5 days before the Taliban. To the south, Massoud took the opportunity to return to the ground: he conquered the North-East territories. This was the biggest defeat of the Taliban since they came to power. In September 1997, Dostom returned to Mazar, to rally his troops and chase the Taliban who commencçaient to return to the region. It then became the only possible saviour in the eyes of the people of the North and neighbouring states. The city was ransacked by the Uzbeks.Mazar was practically in the hands of hazaras groups. It is then that, wanting to recover from the Taliban, Dostom revealed the atrocities committed by Malik (massacre of Taliban Soldiers). Result: 2500 armed Taleban entered the city and massacred the Hazaras. This resulted in a real civil war, with ethnic and sectarian divisions.In November 2001, following the American attacks, Mazar was the first city to be abandoned by the Taliban. Dostom then returned to its fief under American protection.

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Mosquée de Mazar-e-Charif où se trouve le tombeau d'Hazrat Ali. Constance de Bonnaventure
Marché aux légumes et aux fruits, Mazar-e-Charif. VINCENT RONCO
Vendeurs d'épices et de fruits secs à Mazar-e-Charif. Constance de Bonnaventure
Mosquée de Mazar-e-Charif où se trouve le tombeau d'Hazrat Ali. Constance de Bonnaventure

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