Markaz-i Bihsūd District ( fa, ولسوالی مرکز بهسود) is one of the
districts
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...
of
Maidan Wardak Province in
Afghanistan. It is located less than an hour-drive west of
Kabul and south
Bamyan. The main town in the district is
Behsud. The district has an estimated population of 134,852 people,
majority of which are ethnic
Hazaras.
The Markazi Behsud is the largest district of Maidan Wardak Province with a number of villages. Most residents of the district are farmers and involved in
agriculture. The chief of the district is Abdul Rahman Tawfiq.
The
Hesa Awal Behsood District
Hisa-e-Awali Behsud ( prs, حصه اول بهسود) is a district of Maidan Wardak Province, Afghanistan. The district has a Hazara majority resident population, but the district is also used as grazing ground by nomadic Pashtun Kuchis. The H ...
sits to the northeast of this district. Both are strongholds of Hazara militia forces who have engaged in
guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare in which small groups of combatants, such as paramilitary personnel, armed civilians, or Irregular military, irregulars, use military tactics including ambushes, sabotage, Raid (military), raids ...
with the
Taliban and the
Afghan National Security Forces
The Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF), also known as the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF), were the military and internal security forces of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.
Structure
The Afghan National Security Forc ...
(ANSF). One of these groups is led by Abdul Ghani Alipur (also known as Commander Shamshir), who was a fugitive of the former Afghan government; his followers used a
rocket-propelled grenade
A rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) is a shoulder-fired missile weapon that launches rockets equipped with an explosive warhead. Most RPGs can be carried by an individual soldier, and are frequently used as anti-tank weapons. These warheads are a ...
to shoot down an
Mil Mi-17
The Mil Mi-17 ( NATO reporting name: Hip) is a Soviet-designed Russian military helicopter family introduced in 1975 (Mi-8M), continuing in production at two factories, in Kazan and Ulan-Ude. It is known as the Mi-8M series in Russian servic ...
of the
Afghan Air Force
The Air Force of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, also referred to as the Islamic Emirate Air Force and the Afghan Air Force, is the air force branch of the Armed Forces of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.
The Royal Afghan Air Force was e ...
on March 18, 2021, which was transporting several members of the
Afghan National Police. All nine ANSF members in the Mi-17 helicopter were killed, including the Afghan pilots.
Alipar's militia has continued battling the Taliban after it
seized power in August 2021. sporadic clashes were taking place between the militia and the Taliban.
See also
*
Districts of Afghanistan
References
External links
* Map showin
Markazi Bihsud District
Hazarajat
Districts of Maidan Wardak Province
{{Wardak-geo-stub