Mazār-e Sharīf

Mazar-i-Sharif is home to the Mausoleum of Imam Ali. The city has long been a tourist destination because of its famous shrines as well as the Islamic and Hellenistic archeological sites. The city is also home to the Mawlana Jalaluddin Mohammad Balkhi International Airport and Balkh University. It is linked by a road network with Hairatan to the north, Kunduz to the east, Aybak to the southeast, Bamyan to the south, and Sheberghan to the west. It is about 55 km (34 mi) to the south from the Afghanistan–Uzbekistan border. The ancient city of Balkh is about 25 km (16 mi) slightly to the northwest of Mazar-i-Sharif.

The region around Mazar-i-Sharif has been historically part of Greater Khorasan and was controlled by the Tahirids followed by the Saffarids, Samanids, Ghaznavids, Ghurids, Ilkhanids, Timurids, and Khanate of Bukhara until 1751 when it became part of the Durrani Empire.

Mazar-i-Sharif is the regional hub of northern Afghanistan, located in close proximity to Termez in Uzbekistan and the Khatlon Region of Tajikistan.