Khair Khāna


Khair Khāna is a neighborhood in north west Kabul, Afghanistan, part of District 11. It is predominantly a residential suburb about 6 km from central Kabul, with a boom of high rise constructions and modern apartments, as the area has seen major re-developments. To its south-west is the Shamāli Square and the Kabul-Charikar highway.

History

Construction of Khair Khāna began during the late 1960s and early 1970s, as a plan to expand the city of Kabul. It mostly consists of regular blocks and paved road grids. Many of its residents are ethnic Tajiks from the provinces north of Kabul.
Khair Khana mostly survived the ordeal of the Afghan Civil War which destroyed most of Kabul, with the neighborhood remaining largely intact. Many people from other parts of Kabul came here to take shelter. One of the reasons why Khair Khana was spared is because of its north-western location - it was far from the Hezb-i Islami Gulbuddin forces who were attacking the city from the south-east, and in later years the Taliban who were based to the south.