Population: 30 million
Number of Ismailis: Estimates range between 200 000 to 2 million
Key Area: Badakhshan, Baghlan Province
Along the Tajik border sits the mountainous area of Badakshan, including the Wakhan corridor, a narrow sliver of land that separates Tajikistan from Pakistan. Here, ethnic Tajiks number about 200 000. Their history, culture and religion were entirely bound up with that of their families on the other side of the Panj river until the start of the 20th century. They were only separated when the Russian and British empires carved the area in two. Isolated by the Pamir mountains, their Ismaili faith survived even the rule of the Taliban.
Further south, Ismailis have a signifcant presence in Baghlan and a loosely-defined area known as Hazarajat. Curiously, a local, tribal leader based in Baghlan Province and named Sayed Mansour Naderi claims the Nizari Ismaili faith but allegedly refuses to submit to the leadership of the Aga Khan. This even led to reported clashes between his and the Aga Khan's supporters in 2003 as Sayed Naderi blocked the Aga Khan Development Network from carrying out its work.
Originally published 1 year ago
