fa, قلات خلجی , nickname = , settlement_type = City , motto = , image_skyline = , imagesize = 300px , image_caption = , image_flag = , flag_size = , image_seal = , seal_size = , image_shield = , shield_size = , image_blank_emblem = , blank_emblem_type = , blank_emblem_size = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , image_map1 = , mapsize1 = , map_caption1 = , image_dot_map = , dot_mapsize = , dot_map_caption = , dot_x = , dot_y = , pushpin_map = Afghanistan , pushpin_label_position =bottom , pushpin_map_caption =Location in Afghanistan , pushpin_mapsize =300 , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name =

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

, subdivision_type1 =

Province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

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Zabul Province Zabul (Pashto/Dari: ) is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the south of the country. It has a population of 249,000. Zabul became an independent province from neighbouring Kandahar in 1963. Historically, it was part of the Za ...

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Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalist, militant Islamist, jihadist, and Pasht ...

Qalāti Ghilzay, also called Qalāti Zābul or Qalāti Khaljī (), or simply Qalāt or Kalat, is a city in southern

and the capital of

. It is linked by Highway 1 with

Kandahar Kandahar (; Kandahār, , Qandahār) is a city in Afghanistan, located in the south of the country on the Arghandab River, at an elevation of . It is Afghanistan's second largest city after Kabul, with a population of about 614,118. It is the c ...

to the southwest and

Ghazni Ghazni ( prs, غزنی, ps, غزني), historically known as Ghaznain () or Ghazna (), also transliterated as Ghuznee, and anciently known as Alexandria in Opiana ( gr, Αλεξάνδρεια Ωπιανή), is a city in southeastern Afghanistan ...

and

Kabul Kabul (; ps, , ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province; it is administratively divided into 22 municipal districts. Acco ...

to the northeast. The population of the town are ethnic

Pashtuns Pashtuns (, , ; ps, پښتانه, ), also known as Pakhtuns or Pathans, are an Iranian ethnic group who are native to the geographic region of Pashtunistan in the present-day countries of Afghanistan and Pakistan. They were historically r ...

, mostly from the

Ghilji The Ghiljī ( ps, غلجي, ; fa, خیلجی, Xelji) also spelled Khilji, Khalji, or Ghilzai or Ghilzay (), are one of the largest Pashtun tribes. Their traditional homeland is Ghazni and Qalati Ghilji in Afghanistan but they have also sett ...

tribe, after whom the city is named. The total population of Qalati Ghilji is 49,158 (2015). The city has 4 police districts (nahias) with a total land area of 4,820 Hectares and 5,462 total number of dwellings. Qalati Ghilji is a Provincial Centre located in southern Afghanistan. Barren land is the dominant land use classification 59% of total land. While built-up land use only accounts for 19% of total land use, within that classification there is a large proportion of institutional land (33%). Qalati Ghilji also has two distinct industrial areas in Districts 2 and 3. In 2006, Zabul's first

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surfa ...

was built near Qalat. Qalat became home to the U.S.-led Provincial Reconstruction Team Zabul, which began assisting in development projects and building governance throughout the province. On 13 August 2021, Qalati Ghilji was seized by

fighters, becoming the seventeenth provincial capital to be captured as part of wider

2021 Taliban offensive A military offensive by the Taliban insurgent group and other allied militants led to the fall of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan based in Kabul and marked the end of the nearly 20-year-old War in Afghanistan, that had begun following the ...

Other names

Qalati Ghilji has been known as ''Qalāt-i Khaljī'', ''Qalāt-i Tokhī'', or simply ''Qalāt'' or ''Kalāt''.

History

In medieval times, the area was within the heartland of the Khalaj tribe. The Khalji dynasty of India originated from this city. Many of the Khalaj were Pashtunized, transforming into the

tribe of

.The Khalaj West of the Oxus, by V. Minorsky: Khyber.ORG.
; excerpts from "The Turkish Dialect of the Khalaj", Bulletin of the School of Oriental Studies, University of London, Vol 10, No 2, pp 417-437 (retrieved 10 January 2007). A political mission came through the city April 16, 1857, en route to

to broker a new treaty of friendship between the British government at

Peshawar Peshawar (; ps, پېښور ; hnd, ; ; ur, ) is the sixth most populous city in Pakistan, with a population of over 2.3 million. It is situated in the north-west of the country, close to the International border with Afghanistan. It is ...

and the Amir of

. The party was greeted by a group sent out by the heir-apparent to welcome them and check on the party's supplies. Two companies of infantry were formed so the British could inspect the troops. Afterwards, a

shura Shura ( ar, شُورَىٰ, translit=shūrā, lit=consultation) can for example take the form of a council or a referendum. The Quran encourages Muslims to decide their affairs in consultation with each other. Shura is mentioned as a praisewort ...

was held.

Sher Ali Khan Sher Ali Khan (); c. 1825 – 21 February 1879) was Amir of Afghanistan from 1863 to 1866 and from 1868 until his death in 1879. He was one of the sons of Dost Mohammed Khan, founder of the Barakzai dynasty in Afghanistan. Life Sher Ali Khan ...

captured the city on January 22, 1867. In the battle, he lost a son, Mahomed Ali, killed in single combat by his uncle. His uncle was subsequently killed.

Climate

Qalati Ghilji features a

semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of sem ...

(''BSk'') under the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

. The average temperature in Qalat is 13.6 °C, while the annual precipitation averages 283 mm. July is the hottest month of the year with an average temperature of 27.5 °C. The coldest month January has an average temperature of -2.9 °C.

American reconstruction efforts

In an effort to bring economic development to the area, Zabul province's first airstrip was built just outside the city in 2006. It is a dirt runway. The first flight brought in supplies for Provincial Reconstruction Team Zabul and other organizations trying to rebuild the area. Three years later, a girls school was built to attempt to improve education in the area. An initial school supply and prayer mat donation was made, and regular book drops and school supply donations were made until the PRT left in 2013. Clean water programs around the city improved the availability of clean water sources. In 2009, efforts were completed to improve the water system at the old Qalat City Hospital to bring clean drinking water to patients there. Qalat City Fort, Afghanistan 2008

Not all the reconstruction efforts were successful, however. In 2006, construction began on a new economic district for the city. Meant to be an area of commerce and development, ten million dollars and three years later, most of the buildings are unoccupied, unusable either due to lack of the skills to maintain the buildings or due to a lack of need for the building. Zabul province's governor refused to move into the new house, citing the lack of security.

Anne Smedinghoff Anne Smedinghoff (September 18, 1987 – April 6, 2013) was an American diplomat who last worked for the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan. Personal life Smedinghoff grew up in River Forest, Illinois, a suburb about 10 miles west of Chicago. She ...

, a 25-year-old U.S. diplomat, was killed by a suicide car inside the city in the spring of 2013.

Notable sites

*The local skyline is dominated by a fortress constructed by the forces of Alexander the Great (see:

Qalat (fortress) Qalat or kalata () in Persian,For the derivation of the Arabic term from the Persian, see Leslau (1987) p. 426, citing Fraenkel (1886) p. 237 and Belardi (1959) pp. 147-150. * Leslau, Wolf (1987). ''Comparative dictionary of Geʻez (Classical E ...

). *''Ghar Bolan Baba'', a 730m deep cave historically used for religious purposes''Atlas of the great caves of the world''. Paul Courbon, Claude Chabert, Peter Bosted, Karen Lindsley. Cave Books, 1989. p. 21.

References

{{authority control Forts in Afghanistan Populated places in Zabul Province Provincial capitals in Afghanistan