The Kabul–Behsud Highway, formally National Highway 13, NH13, is a highway connecting
Kabul in Afghanistan to
Behsud in the west, passing through
Maidan Wardak Province. It is cited as a highly dangerous route, prone to hijackings, beheadings, kidnappings and robberies, particularly in the districts of
Jalrez and
Markazi Bihsud, and has obtained the moniker "Death Road" due to the frequency of
Taliban killings along the route.
History
In 2008, the Ministry of Public Works began the process of rehabilitating 136 kilometres of the highway, aided by 36 million euros funding from the Italian government. The first phase of the project, Lot No 1, began in 2008 with the rehabilitation of a 54 kilometre stretch of earth road starting in
Maidan Shar
Maidan Shar ( ps, میدانښار, Maidānkhār; fa, میدانشار, Maidānshār), also Maidan Shahr or simply Maidan, is the capital of Maidan Wardak province in central Afghanistan. Its population was estimated to be 35,008 in 2003, of whic ...
and working towards the
Onai Pass in Jalrez District.
In 2009, American convoys were ambushed along the highway by the Taliban near the village of
Zaiwalat
Zaiwalat, also Zaywalāyat or Zywlayt (Pashto: زیولایت) is a subdistrict and village of Jalrez District, Maidan Wardak Province, Afghanistan. It lies along the Kabul-Behsud Highway, to the west of Kot-e Ashro and to the east of the town of ...
.
In late July to early August 2012, 11 citizens of the Hazara ethnic group were brutally tortured and beheaded by the Taliban in the
Kot-e Ashro
Kot-e Ashro (also Kotah-ye `Ashro, Kot-i-Ashro, Kuteh-Ashro) (Pashto:کوټه عښرو ) is a small town in the western Paghman Mountains of Jalrez District, Maidan Wardak Province, Afghanistan. It was formerly the district capital until it was ta ...
area. In one incident on August 1, five people were forced off a vehicle on the highway and killed together.
Description
The route passes southwest out of
Kabul along the
Kabul-Kandahar Highway, and forks to the west to the north of the town of
Maidan Shar
Maidan Shar ( ps, میدانښار, Maidānkhār; fa, میدانشار, Maidānshār), also Maidan Shahr or simply Maidan, is the capital of Maidan Wardak province in central Afghanistan. Its population was estimated to be 35,008 in 2003, of whic ...
at what is known as Maidan Town,
from which it is designated NH13 at . A stretch in Jalrez district to the west of
Maidan Shar
Maidan Shar ( ps, میدانښار, Maidānkhār; fa, میدانشار, Maidānshār), also Maidan Shahr or simply Maidan, is the capital of Maidan Wardak province in central Afghanistan. Its population was estimated to be 35,008 in 2003, of whic ...
en route to
Jalrez town is particularly notorious, with so many incidents of beheadings and kidnappings against Hazaras that most drivers now avoid it.
From Maidan Shar, the road passes through
Kot-e Ashro
Kot-e Ashro (also Kotah-ye `Ashro, Kot-i-Ashro, Kuteh-Ashro) (Pashto:کوټه عښرو ) is a small town in the western Paghman Mountains of Jalrez District, Maidan Wardak Province, Afghanistan. It was formerly the district capital until it was ta ...
,
Zaiwalat
Zaiwalat, also Zaywalāyat or Zywlayt (Pashto: زیولایت) is a subdistrict and village of Jalrez District, Maidan Wardak Province, Afghanistan. It lies along the Kabul-Behsud Highway, to the west of Kot-e Ashro and to the east of the town of ...
, Jalrez,
Takana
Takana is a forum of prominent personalities with the objective of fighting sexual abuse in the National Religious sector in Israel.
The forum came to the spotlight in February 2010 when it published a statement claiming that Rabbi Mordechai Elo ...
and
Sarchashma.
[GeoNames, Retrieved 30 April 2020.] There is a fork in the road near the village of
Zarkjarid about west of Jalrez town, with National Highway 3 and then National Highway 6 connecting it with
Bamyan in the northwest, while the highway continues west-southwest to Behsud. At Behsud and , the highway becomes the
Behsud-Punjab Highway, joining the A77 route.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kabul-Behsud Highway
Roads in Afghanistan
Maidan Wardak Province
Jalrez District