Girishk

Coordinates: 31°49′N 64°33′E / 31.817°N 64.550°E / 31.817; 64.550

Girishk
Girishk Location in Afghanistan
Coordinates: 31°49′N 64°33′E / 31.817°N 64.550°E / 31.817; 64.550
Country	Afghanistan
Province	Helmand Province
Elevation	2,680 ft (817 m)
Time zone	UTC+4:30

Girishk (Pashto: ګرشک‎, also Gereshk) is a town in Nahri Saraj District in Helmand province on the Helmand River in Afghanistan, some 120 km (75 mi) northwest of Kandahar, at 817 metres (2,680 ft) altitude. It is the centre of a rich agricultural region with the Kajakai Dam upriver diverting water to the Boghra Irrigation Canal. Girishk was originally built around a fort on the east bank of the river but was later rebuilt on the west. During the First Anglo-Afghan War (1839–42), the fort was captured by the British but it was later abandoned; the same thing happened in 1879. Girishk has a population of about 48,546 and has a developed hospital and a school of engineering which was built back in 1957.

Girishk is located on the important transport route known as Highway 1, which was built during the time of the Soviet war in Afghanistan. This route links Farah Province in the west and to Kandahar Province in the east. As part of Operation Moshtarak the British Army and Afghan workers are constructing Route Trident, a road that will eventually connect Girishk with the provincial capital of Lashkar Gah.^[1] Girishk is also the southern terminus of Route 611. The area is irrigated by the Helmand and Arghandab Valley Authority.^[2]

Climate

Girishk has a hot desert climate (Köppen BWh), characterised by little precipitation and high variation between summer and winter temperatures. The average temperature in Girishk is 19.6 °C, while the annual precipitation averages 117 mm. Summers start in mid-May, last until late-September, and are extremely dry. July is the hottest month of the year with an average temperature of 32.2 °C. The coldest month January has an average temperature of 7.0 °C.

Ethnography

Girishk was under control of Noorzai tribe at the time of Taliban. There is a majority of Pashtuns, with some Aimaq and Tajiks. Mullah Mir Hamza an ethnic Pashtun from Noorzai tribe was the District governor of Girishk, and Mullah Mahmmad Azam an ethnic Pashtun from Noorzai tribe was the Commander of Taliban in Girishk.

Textual sources: Louis Dupree, Afghanistan. 1st Edition: 1973; Ludwig W. Adamec, Historical Dictionary of Afghanistan, 3rd ed., 2003.

Cartographic sources: S.I. Bruk, Narody Peredney Azii (1960); S.I. Bruk, and V. S. Apenchenko, Atlas Narodov Mira (Moscow: Academy of Science, 1964) A. Gabriel, Religionsgeographie von Persien (Vienna, 1971).

Operation Enduring Freedom

In November, 2003, Abdul Wahed died in Girishk at the special forces base, after torture by the Afghan army.^[4] In April 2008 2nd Battalion 7th Marines, Echo Co, which was sent there to help support train the Afghan Police, worked with the Danish and British military.^[5]

On December 4, 2008 two Danish soldiers were killed near Girishk.^[6]

References

1. ↑ BBC News (28 January 2010). "Progress slow and messy in Afghanistan". Retrieved 3 September 2010. 
2. ↑ (pdf) The Helmand Valley Project in Afghanistan: A.I.D. Evaluation Special Study No. 18 C Clapp-Wicek & E Baldwin, U.S. Agency for International Development, published December 1983
3. ↑ "Climate: Gereshk - Climate-Data.org". Retrieved 9 September 2016. 
4. ↑ NYTimes: US Fails to Investigate Abuses
5. ↑ http://www.marine-corps-news.com/2008/11/hardhit_27_begins_return_from_1.htm
6. ↑ Two Danish soldiers killed in Afghanistan