Editing Kandahar (section)

===Modern (1709–present)===
{{Further|Hotak dynasty|Durrani Empire}}
[[File:KandaharMosque02.JPG|thumb|The Mausoleum of [[Mirwais Hotak]]]]
[[Mirwais Hotak]], chief of the [[Ghilji]] tribe, revolted in 1709 by killing [[George XI of Kartli|Gurgin Khan]], an ethnic [[Georgian people|Georgian]] subject and governor of the Shia [[Safavid dynasty|Safavid]] Persians. After establishing the [[Hotak dynasty]] in Kandahar, Mirwais and his army successfully defeated subsequent expeditions by [[Kaikhosro of Kartli|Kay Khusraw]] and Rustam Khán. Mirwais resisted attempts by the Persian government who were seeking to convert the Afghans from [[Sunni Islam|Sunni]] to the Shia sect of Islam. He died of a natural death in November 1715 and was succeeded by his brother [[Abdul Aziz Hotak|Abdul Aziz]], but after being suspected of giving Kandahar's sovereignty back to the Persians he was killed by his nephew [[Mahmud Hotak]].<ref name="Browne29">{{Cite web|url=http://persian.packhum.org/persian/pf?file=90001014&ct=29|title=AN OUTLINE OF THE HISTORY OF PERSIA DURING THE LAST TWO CENTURIES (A.D. 1722–1922)|page=29|work=Edward Granville Browne|publisher=Packard Humanities Institute|location=London|access-date=24 September 2010|archive-date=11 October 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171011103441/http://persian.packhum.org/persian/pf?file=90001014&ct=29|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="Malleson">{{Cite book|title=History of Afghanistan, from the Earliest Period to the Outbreak of the War of 1878|last1=Malleson|first1=George Bruce|year=1878|publisher=Elibron.com|location=London|isbn=1-4021-7278-8|page=227|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pqNGBEmHUd4C&pg=PA227|access-date=27 September 2010|archive-date=16 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170416125629/https://books.google.com/books?id=pqNGBEmHUd4C&pg=PA227|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 1722, Mahmud led an army of Afghans to the Safavid capital [[Isfahan]] and proclaimed himself King of Persia. The [[Hotak dynasty]] was eventually removed from power by a new Persian ruler, [[Nader Shah]]. In 1738, Nader Shah invaded Afghanistan and destroyed the now ''[[Old Kandahar]]'', which was held by [[Hussain Hotak]] and his [[Ghilji]] tribes.<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/7798/Afghanistan/21392/Last-Afghan-empire|title=Last Afghan empire|encyclopedia=Louis Dupree, Nancy H. Dupree and others|publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica Online|access-date=24 September 2010|archive-date=30 November 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101130150119/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/7798/Afghanistan/21392/Last-Afghan-empire|url-status=live}}</ref> In the meantime, Nader Shah freed [[Ahmad Shah Durrani|Ahmad Khan]] (later [[Ahmad Shah Durrani]]) and his brother Zulfikar who were held prisoners by the Hotak ruler. Before leaving southern Afghanistan for Delhi in India, Nader Shah laid out the foundation for a new town to be built next to the destroyed ancient city, naming it "[[Naderabad, Kandahar|Naderabad]]". His rule ended in June 1747 after being murdered by his Persian guards.<ref>''The Afghans'' (2002) by [[Willem Vogelsang]]. Page 228.</ref>
[[File:Kandahar fourthcity durrani.jpg|thumb|This lithograph is taken from plate 23 of ''Afghaunistan'' by Lieutenant [[James Rattray]], 1848. He sketched Kandahar in December 1841 from the rooftop of the former residence of the province's governor, Sirdar Meer Dil Khaun, who was brother to the Emir. Pictured on the left is the tomb of Ahmed Shah Durrani and on the right the Bala Hissar (fort) and citadel.]]
[[File:Coronation of Ahmad Shah Durrani in 1747 by Breshna.jpg|left|thumb|Painting by [[Abdul Ghafoor Breshna]] depicting the 1747 [[coronation]] of [[Ahmad Shah Durrani]], who is regarded as the [[List of national founders|founding father]] of Afghanistan ([[Father of the Nation]]).]]
Ahmad Shah Durrani, chief of the [[Durrani]] tribe, gained control of Kandahar and made it the capital of his new [[Durrani Empire|Afghan Empire]] in October 1747. Initially, Ahmad Shah had trouble finding land on which to build his city. His own tribe had no extensive lands and others who had, such as the Alikozai and Barakzai, refused to give up their lands. Only the Popalzai finally offered him his pick of their lands. The foundations for the city were laid in June 1761.<ref>{{cite book|last=Dupree|first=Nancy|date=1977|title=An Historical Guide to Afghanistan|publisher=Jagra, Ltd.|page=281}}</ref> Once begun, the city was built with grand proportions. It was laid out in the form of a regular rectangle with a circumference of three miles; walls 30 feet thick at the bottom and 15 feet at the top, rose 27 feet high to enclose it. Outside, the walls were ringed by a moat 24 feet wide. Six mammoth gateways pierced these walls: the Eid Gah Gate on the north, the Shikarpur Gate on the south; the Herat and Top Khana Gates on the west; and, the Bar Durrani and Kabul Gates on the east. At its peak, Ahmad Shah's empire included present-day Afghanistan, Pakistan, the [[Khorasan Province|Khorasan]] and [[Quhistan|Kohistan]] provinces of Iran, along with [[Punjab, India|Punjab]] in India. In October 1772, Ahmad Shah retired and died from a natural cause.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/10162/Ahmad-Shah-Durrani|title=Aḥmad Shah Durrānī|publisher=[[Britannica.com]] Online Version|access-date=9 January 2011|archive-date=4 April 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140404104909/https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/10162/Ahmad-Shah-Durrani|url-status=live}}</ref> A new city was laid out by Ahmad Shah and is dominated by his mausoleum, which is adjacent to the [[Mosque of the Cloak of the Prophet Mohammed|Mosque of the Cloak]] in the centre of the city. By 1776, his eldest son [[Timur Shah Durrani|Timur Shah]] had transferred Afghanistan's main capital, due to several conflicts with various Pashtun tribes, from Kandahar to Kabul, where the [[Durrani]] legacy continued.<ref Name=Dupree3/>

From 1818 to 1855, Kandahar was ruled by half-brothers of [[Dost Mohammad Khan]] as an [[Principality of Qandahar|independent principality]]. In September 1826, [[Syed Ahmad Barelvi|Syed Ahmad Shaheed]]'s followers arrived to Kandahar in search of volunteers to help them wage [[jihad]] against the [[Sikh Empire|Sikh]] invaders to what is now Pakistan. Led by [[Ranjit Singh]], the [[Sikhs]] had captured several of Afghanistan's territories in the east, including what is now [[Khyber Pakhtunkhwa]] and [[Kashmir]]. More than 400 local Kandahar warriors assembled themselves for the jihad. Sayed Din Mohammad Kandharai was appointed as their leader.

'''British war'''
[[File:Kandahar-1881.jpg|thumb|[[British Raj|British-Indian]] invading forces at Kandahar after the 1880 [[Battle of Kandahar (1880)|Battle of Kandahar]], during the [[Second Anglo-Afghan War]]. The large defensive wall around the city was finally removed in the early 1930s by the order of King [[Mohammed Nadir Shah|Nader Khan]], the father of King [[Mohammed Zahir Shah|Zahir Shah]].]]
[[British Raj|British-led Indian forces]] from neighbouring [[British India]] invaded the city in 1839, during the [[First Anglo-Afghan War]], but withdrew in 1842. In November 1855, Dost Mohammad Khan conquered Kandahar. The British and Indian forces returned in 1878 during the [[Second Anglo-Afghan War]]. They emerged from the city in July 1880 to confront the forces of [[Mohammad Ayub Khan (Emir of Afghanistan)|Ayub Khan]], but were defeated at the [[Battle of Maiwand]]. They were again forced to withdraw a few years later, despite winning the [[Battle of Kandahar (1880)|Battle of Kandahar]].

Kandahar remained peaceful for the next 100 years, except during 1929 when loyalists of [[Habibullah Kalakani]] (Bache Saqqaw) placed the fortified city on lock-down and began torturing its population. Nobody was allowed to enter or leave from within the city's tall defensive walls, and as a result of this many people suffered after running out of food supplies. This lasted until October 1929 when [[Mohammed Nadir Shah|Nadir Khan]] and his Afghan army came to eliminate Kalakani, known as the Tajik bandit from the village of [[Kalakan]] in northern Kabul Province.

During [[Mohammed Zahir Shah|Zahir Shah]]'s rule, the city slowly began expanding by adding modern style streets and housing schemes. Although Kandahar remained less international than Kabul, with fewer foreigners in residence and thus no market for coffee, jam, potatoes, or other European produce, a modest German community took root there in the 1930s. Engineers and factory managers, accompanied by their spouses, arrived to supervise wool-processing plants. A Siemens electrical station powered these emerging industries, signaling a step toward the broader modernization taking shape across Afghanistan during this period.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Crews|first=Robert D.|title=Afghan Modern: The History of a Global Nation|date=2015|publisher=Harvard University Press|isbn=978-0-674-49574-6|edition=|location=Cambridge, MA|pages=161|chapter=Seduced by Capital}}</ref>
[[File:1973-12-08 Kandahar (14).jpg|thumb|Street in the city, 1973]]
In the 1960s, during the rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union, [[Kandahar International Airport]] was built by the [[United States Army Corps of Engineers|U.S. Army Corps of Engineers]] next to the city. The U.S. also completed several other major projects in Kandahar and in other parts of southern Afghanistan. In the meantime, Soviet engineers were busy building major infrastructures in other parts of the country, such as [[Bagram Airfield]] and [[Kabul International Airport]].

During the 1980s, [[Soviet–Afghan War]], Kandahar city (and the province as a whole) witnessed heavy fighting as it became a centre of resistance as the [[mujahideen]] forces waged a strong [[guerrilla warfare]] against the [[Democratic Republic of Afghanistan|Soviet-backed government]], who tightly held on control of the city. Government and Soviet troops surrounded the city and subjected it to heavy air bombardment in which many civilians lost their lives.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lib.unb.ca/Texts/JCS/bin/get5.cgi?directory=fall99%2F&filename=WESTERMA.htm#39|title=The Limits of Soviet Airpower: The Failure of Military Coercion in Afghanistan, 1979–89|work=Edward B. Westermann|publisher=[[University of New Brunswick]]|access-date=9 January 2011|archive-date=5 June 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110605194158/http://www.lib.unb.ca/Texts/JCS/bin/get5.cgi?directory=fall99%2F&filename=WESTERMA.htm#39|url-status=live}}</ref> In January 1982 indiscriminate shelling and bombing by the Soviets killed hundreds.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.heritage.org/node/22652/print-display|title=The Heritage Foundation|access-date=11 January 2018|archive-date=12 January 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180112100834/http://www.heritage.org/node/22652/print-display|url-status=unfit}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/03/08/world/soviet-reprisals-on-afghans-called-fierce.html|title=Soviet Reprisals on Afghans Called Fierce|newspaper=The New York Times|date=8 March 1982|last1=Middleton|first1=Drew|access-date=29 January 2018|archive-date=12 January 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180112044330/http://www.nytimes.com/1982/03/08/world/soviet-reprisals-on-afghans-called-fierce.html|url-status=live}}</ref> 300 civilians were killed during Soviet bombings in July 1984.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1984/07/24/Soviet-forces-bombed-the-city-of-Kandahar-in-southern/5417459489600/|title=Soviet forces bombed the city of Kandahar in southern|access-date=11 January 2018|archive-date=12 January 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180112042626/https://www.upi.com/Archives/1984/07/24/Soviet-forces-bombed-the-city-of-Kandahar-in-southern/5417459489600/|url-status=live}}</ref> It was under siege again in April 1986.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://apnews.com/19a6eb5d553820d0143d100366f9cee1|title=Soviet-Afghan Offensive Destroys Rebel Stronghold|website=[[Associated Press]]|access-date=7 June 2020|archive-date=7 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200607155106/https://apnews.com/19a6eb5d553820d0143d100366f9cee1|url-status=live}}</ref> The city's population was reduced from 200,000 before the war to no more than 25,000 inhabitants, following a months-long campaign of carpet bombing and bulldozing by the Soviets and Afghan communist soldiers in 1987.{{sfn|Kaplan|2008|p=188}} Kandahar International Airport was used by the [[Soviet Army]] during their ten-year troop placement in the country. The city also became a battle ground for the US and Pakistani-backed forces against the pro-Communist government of Afghanistan.<ref name="theguardian.com">{{Cite web|date=9 December 2001|title=Kandahar on brink of chaos as warlords ready for battle|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2001/dec/09/afghanistan.peterbeaumont|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190104175515/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2001/dec/09/afghanistan.peterbeaumont|archive-date=4 January 2019|access-date=4 January 2019|website=[[TheGuardian.com]]}}</ref>

Kandahar underwent a complete sociopolitical collapse in the early 1990s, driven in part by the divide-and-rule tactics of the communist governor-general, [[Nur ul-Haq Ulumi]], who manipulated rival mujahideen factions against each other, and by the rampant greed within both the communist and mujahideen militias.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last=Moiz|first=Ibrahim|title=The True Story of the Taliban: Emirate and Insurgency, 1994–2021|date=2024|publisher=The Other Press|isbn=9798336042269|location=Kuala Lumpur|pages=47–53|oclc=1458059551}}</ref> After the Soviet withdrawal and the collapse of [[Mohammad Najibullah|Najibullah]]'s government in 1992, Kandahar fell to local mujahideen commander, [[Gul Agha Sherzai]]. However Sherzai lacked authority against other local commanders which led to lawlessness in the city,<ref name="theguardian.com" /> and fighting in 1993.<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Zaeef|first1=Mohammad|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zfGlVzNltF8C&pg=PT377|title=My life with the Taliban|date=7 August 2012|publisher=Hachette India|isbn=9789350094136|access-date=7 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210501130520/https://books.google.com/books?id=zfGlVzNltF8C&pg=PT377|archive-date=1 May 2021|url-status=live}}</ref> During this time, banditry, rape, and murder became rampant in Kandahar, creating a demand for a more moral and unified alternative. This led to the rise of the ''talibs'' (students), who eventually formed the Taliban movement. By the spring of 1994, the nucleus of the [[Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (1996–2001)|Taliban emirate]] had begun to take shape, and that year, they launched operations to dismantle warlord militia checkpoints around the city. The talibs gained considerable popularity and legitimacy during this period by defeating these predatory warlords.<ref name=":0" />

In August 1994, the Taliban, under [[Mullah Omar]], captured Kandahar from commander [[Mullah Naqib]] almost without a fight<ref name="theguardian.com" /> and turned the city into their headquarters. The capture of Afghanistan's second-largest city marked the Taliban's transformation from a fledgling militia into an Islamic emirate, solidifying their legitimacy as a governing authority through the imposition of a strict interpretation of Islamic law.<ref name=":0" /> Formal education for girls was banned as well as the consumption of TV, films, music with instrumental [[accompaniments]], and the playing of sports. In December 1999, a hijacked [[Indian Airlines Flight 814]] plane by Pakistani militants loyal to [[Harkat-ul-Mujahideen]] landed at Kandahar International Airport and kept the passengers hostage as part of a demand to release three Pakistani militants from prison in India.

====21st century====
{{Further|International Security Assistance Force|Presidency of Hamid Karzai}}
[[File:KANDAHAR TEN-MILER.jpg|thumb|[[United States Army|U.S. Army]] troops in 2009 passing by the starting point of the [[Army Ten-Miler]] run at their base next to [[Kandahar International Airport]].]]
In October 2001, as part of [[War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)|Operation Enduring Freedom]], the [[United States Navy]] began [[bombing of Kandahar (2001)|hitting targets]] inside the city by [[Precision-guided munition|precision-guided]] [[cruise missile]]s that were fired from the [[Persian Gulf]]. These targets were the airport and buildings that were occupied by the Taliban, including [[History of Arabs in Afghanistan|Arab]] families who had arrived several years earlier and were residing in the area.<ref>[[BBC News]], [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7193579.stm Kandahar's cemetery of 'miracles'] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080120174340/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7193579.stm |date=20 January 2008 }}</ref> About a month later, the Taliban began surrendering in mass numbers to a private militia that had been formed by [[Gul Agha Sherzai]] and [[Hamid Karzai]].<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.time.com/time/asia/2003/journey/afghanistan.html|title=Home Free|quote=''[[Hamid Karzai]] dreamed for years of his eventual homecoming. But for both him and his newly reborn nation, the journey has only begun''|magazine=Time|access-date=9 January 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090724022555/http://www.time.com/time/asia/2003/journey/afghanistan.html|archive-date=24 July 2009}}</ref> Kandahar once again fell into the hands of Sherzai, who had control over the area before the rise of the Taliban. He was transferred in 2003 and replaced by [[Yousef Pashtun]] until [[Asadullah Khalid]] took the post in 2005. [[Toryalai Wesa]] was appointed [[List of governors of Kandahar|Governor of the province]] by President Hamid Karzai in December 2008 after [[Rahmatullah Raufi]]'s four-month rule.

In 2002, Kandahar International Airport started to be used by members of the United States armed forces and NATO's [[International Security Assistance Force]] (ISAF). NATO began training the newly formed [[Afghan National Police]] and provided security responsibility of the city. The [[military of Afghanistan]], backed by [[NATO]] forces, gradually expanded its authority and presence throughout most of the country. The [[205th Corps (Afghanistan)|205th Corps]] of the [[Afghan National Army]] was based at Kandahar and provided military assistance to the south of the country. The [[Canadian Forces]] maintained their military command headquarters at Kandahar, heading the [[Train Advise Assist Command – South|Regional Command South]] of the NATO led [[International Security Assistance Force]] in [[Kandahar Province]]. The Taliban also had supporters inside the city reporting on events.<ref>BBC News, [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8203830.stm Kandahar dreamers test Taliban edicts] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090818081449/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8203830.stm |date=18 August 2009 }}</ref>

NATO forces expanded the Afghan police force for the prevention of a Taliban comeback in Kandahar, the militants' ''"spiritual birthplace"'' and a strategic key to ward off the [[Taliban insurgency]], as a part of a larger effort that also aimed to deliver services such as electricity and clean drinking water that the Taliban could not provide – encouraging support for the government in a city that was once the Taliban's headquarters. The most significant battle between NATO troops and the Taliban lasted throughout the summer of 2006, culminating in [[Operation Medusa]]. The Taliban failed to defeat the Western troops in open warfare, which marked a turn in their tactics towards [[Improvised explosive device|IED]] emplacement.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/feedarticle/8912934|title=Removed: news agency feed article|work=the Guardian|date=9 December 2015|access-date=6 May 2016|archive-date=20 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920044330/https://www.theguardian.com/info/2015/dec/09/removed-news-agency-feed-article|url-status=live}}</ref> In June 2008, it was reported that over 1,000 [[Sarposa prison tunneling escape of 2011|inmates had escaped]] from [[Sarposa prison]]. In Spring 2010, the province and the city of Kandahar became a target of American operations following ''[[Operation Moshtarak]]'' in the neighbouring [[Helmand Province]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/27/world/asia/27kandahar.html|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220103/https://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/27/world/asia/27kandahar.html|archive-date=3 January 2022|url-access=subscription|url-status=live|title=Kandahar, a Battlefield Even Before U.S. Offensive|date=27 March 2010|work=The New York Times|access-date=6 May 2016}}{{cbignore}}</ref> In March 2010, U.S. and NATO commanders released details of plans for the biggest offensive of the war against the Taliban insurgency.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://in.reuters.com/article/southAsiaNews/idINIndia-47354120100331|title=Q+A – NATO sees Kandahar battle as Afghan turning point|work=Reuters Editorial|date=31 March 2010|agency=Reuters India|access-date=6 May 2016|archive-date=20 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920044331/https://www.reuters.com/?edition-redirect=in|url-status=dead}}</ref>

[[File:Crocker and Wesa in 2012.jpg|left|thumb|[[United States Ambassador to Afghanistan|U.S. Ambassador]] [[Ryan Crocker]] and [[Toryalai Wesa]], the [[list of governors of Kandahar|Governor of Kandahar Province]].]]
In May 2010, Kandahar International Airport became subject of a combined rocket and ground attack by insurgents, following similar attacks on Kabul and Bagram in the preceding weeks. Although this attack did not lead to many casualties on the side of NATO forces, it did show that the militants are still capable of launching multiple, coordinated operations in Afghanistan. In June 2010, a [[shura]] was held by Afghan President Hamid Karzai with tribal and religious leaders of the Kandahar region. The meeting highlighted the need for support of NATO-led forces in order to stabilize parts of the province.

By 2011, Kandahar became known as the assassination city of Afghanistan after witnessing many targeted killings. In July [[Ahmed Wali Karzai]], brother of President Hamid Karzai, was shot by his long time head of security. Soon after the [[Quetta Shura]] of the Taliban claimed responsibility. The next day an Islamic cleric (mulla) of the famous [[Red Mosque, Kandahar|Red Mosque]] in the Shahr-e Naw area of the city and a number of other people were killed by a Taliban suicide bomber who had hidden explosives inside his [[turban]]. On 27 July 2011, the mayor of the city, [[Ghulam Haider Hamidi]], was assassinated by another Taliban militant who had hidden explosives in his turban. Two [[deputy mayor]]s had been killed in 2010,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/07/27/afghanistan.mayor.killed/index.html|title=Kandahar mayor killed in suicide attack; Taliban claim responsibility|access-date=6 May 2016|archive-date=4 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304111007/http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/07/27/afghanistan.mayor.killed/index.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> while many tribal elders and Islamic clerics have also been assassinated in the last several years. The overwhelming majority of the victims in the attacks are ordinary Afghan civilians.<ref name=civilians>[http://www.pajhwok.com/en/2011/10/10/challenges-remain-despite-reduced-rebel-attacks-isaf Challenges remain despite reduced rebel attacks: ISAF] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130612004042/http://www.pajhwok.com/en/2011/10/10/challenges-remain-despite-reduced-rebel-attacks-isaf |date=12 June 2013 }}. Pajhwok Afghan News. 10 October 2011.</ref> On 6 June 2012, at least 21 civilians were killed and 50 others injured when two Taliban suicide bombers on motorcycles blew themselves up in a market area near Kandahar International Airport.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.pajhwok.com/en/2012/06/07/21-killed-50-injured-twin-suicide-blasts-video|title=21 killed, 50 injured in twin suicide blasts (Video)|publisher=Pajhwok Afghan News|editor=Siddiqullah|date=7 June 2012|access-date=8 June 2012|archive-date=12 June 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130612002802/http://www.pajhwok.com/en/2012/06/07/21-killed-50-injured-twin-suicide-blasts-video|url-status=dead}}</ref>

On [[May 2020 Afghanistan attacks|4 May 2020]], a policewoman was assassinated in the centre of Kandahar, making her the fifth policewoman to be killed during the previous two months in Kandahar. No group claimed responsibility for the killing of the policewomen by the end of the day of the reported event.<ref name="vo1">{{Cite web|url=https://www.voanews.com/a/south-central-asia_taliban-claim-attack-afghan-army-base/6188667.html|title=Taliban Claim Attack on Afghan Army Base|date=4 May 2020|via=voanews.com/|access-date=28 May 2020|archive-date=16 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210816214122/https://www.voanews.com/south-central-asia/taliban-claim-attack-afghan-army-base|url-status=live}}</ref>

On 12 August 2021, the Taliban [[Battle of Kandahar (2021)|captured Kandahar]]. After days of brutal clashes with [[Afghan National Army|ANA]] soldiers retreating from the city, the Taliban were finally able to capture the city.<ref name = "talib1">{{cite web|last1=Akhgar|first1=Tameem|title=Taliban take Kandahar, Herat in major Afghanistan offensive|url=https://apnews.com/article/middle-east-afghanistan-taliban-26d485963b7a0d9f2107afcbc38f239a|website=Apnews|date=12 August 2021|access-date=12 August 2021|archive-date=12 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210812043017/https://apnews.com/article/middle-east-afghanistan-taliban-26d485963b7a0d9f2107afcbc38f239a|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name = "talib2">{{cite news|last1=Goldbaum|first1=Christina|title=Afghanistan Collapse Accelerates as 2 Vital Cities Near Fall to Taliban|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/12/world/asia/kandahar-afghanistan-taliban.html|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211228/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/12/world/asia/kandahar-afghanistan-taliban.html|archive-date=28 December 2021|url-access=limited|newspaper=The New York Times|date=12 August 2021|access-date=12 August 2021}}{{cbignore}}</ref> It became the twelfth provincial capital to be seized by Taliban as part of the wider [[2021 Taliban offensive]].

On 15 October 2021, [[2021 Kandahar bombing|four suicide bombers killed dozens at a Shia mosque in the city]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Afghanistan: At least 35 killed in suicide bombing during prayers at Kandahar mosque|url=https://news.sky.com/story/afghanistan-at-least-15-killed-in-explosion-at-mosque-in-kandahar-12434327|access-date=15 October 2021|website=Sky News|language=en|archive-date=16 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211016130830/https://news.sky.com/story/afghanistan-at-least-15-killed-in-explosion-at-mosque-in-kandahar-12434327|url-status=live}}</ref>