Reg (Khanashin) District is situated in the southeastern part of

Helmand Province Helmand (Pashto language, Pashto/Dari language, Dari: ; ), also known as Hillmand, in ancient times, as Hermand and Hethumand, is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, in the south of the country. It is the largest province by area, covering ...

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

along the

Helmand River The Helmand river (Pashto/Dari: ; Ancient Greek: Ἐτύμανδρος, ''Etýmandros''; Latin: '), also spelled Helmend, or Helmund, Hirmand, is the longest river in Afghanistan and the primary watershed for the endorheic Sistan Basin. It o ...

on its western bank. The population is 25,600 (80%

Pashtun Pashtuns (, , ; ;), also known as Pakhtuns, or Pathans, are an Iranic ethnic group primarily residing in southern and eastern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan. They were historically also referred to as Afghans until 1964 after the ...

and 20% Balouch). The main village is Khanashin. The district is almost a desert and all the villages are along the Helmand River. The drought has extremely affected this district and its agriculture is ruined. The unemployment rate is 80%.

Agriculture

Actually, the district is known as the "Green Zone" due to its abundance of vegetation. Due to irrigation controlled by the Helmand and Arghandab Valley Authority(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 the

feeds into many canals that wind through the surrounding villages and bring water to this once desolate area, allowing local farmers to grow crops ranging from corn, okra, wheat, poppy, and marijuana. The unemployment rate is below 20% due to the surge in American troops in the region, bringing much needed safety and stability, allowing locals to move back into the area and re-open once flourishing business.

History

Reg District was, for much of the Afghan War, under Taliban control, until it was taken by

ISAF The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) was a multinational military mission in Afghanistan from 2001 to 2014. It was established by United Nations Security Council Resolution 1386 according to the Bonn Agreement, which outlined t ...

forces in July 2009 during Operation Khanjar.

Natural Resources

Geologists also discovered rare earth minerals and niobium deposits in the Khanneshin area of Southern Helmand province with an estimated value of more than $89 billion

References

External links

Map of Settlements
AIMS, May 2002 Districts of Helmand Province {{Helmand-geo-stub