Discover with Timothy
21st Anniversary as Content Creator

Khyber Pass, Afghanistan/Pakistan

Khyber Pass is a mountain pass linking Afghanistan with Pakistan. The pass has been known and in use since antiquity. It was part of the ancient trade route during the time of the Silk Road, and it was also used by various forces to launch invasions in Central and South Asia.

Khyber Pass cuts through the Safed Koh Mountains, which are part of the Hindu Kush Mountains. The summit of the pass is about 5 km into Pakistan, at Landi Kotal. According to historians, the name Khyber seems to be of Hebrew origin, meaning a fortress or palace. There has not been a clear explanation how it was derived from Hebrew.

The Khyber PassThe Khyber Pass in Pakistan
Source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:KhyberPassPakistan_enh2.jpg
Author: Gasparbarka
photo licensing



Khyber Pass was used by Darius I and Alexander the Great to invade India. Later on, Genghis Khan and other mongols also used the pass to conquer South Asia. Turkic-Mongols such as Timur Lane and Babur made used of Khyber Pass to penetrate India, enabling them to establish the Mughal Empire, which flourished from 1526 until 1857. When Persians under Nadir Shah and later the Afghans under Ahmad Shah Durrani launched their attacks on Mughal India, they too made use of Khyber Pass.

By the 20th century, the character of Khyber Pass changed, and Western and Japanese backpackers and hippies began traveling it. During the various conflicts in Afghanistan, the Khyber Pass was a major supply route for NATO forces. When the Taliban attempted to block off access to the pass in late 2008 and early 2009, they came into confrontation with the Pakistani government. Perhaps related to this impasse, a bridge on the Khyber Pass, about 15 miles from Peshawar, was blown up in February 2009. Though no one claimed responsibility, it is believed to be the work of militants supportive of the Taliban or sponsored by them.

Train passing through Khyber PassTrain of the Pakistan Railway passing through Khyber Pass
Source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:KhyberRailway_01.jpg
Author: MaltaGC
photo licensing

Train on the Khyber PassTrain leaving Shahgai in Pakistan for the Khyber Pass
Source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:KhyberRailway_02.jpg
Author: MaltaGC
photo licensing

 Latest updates on Penang Travel Tips

 Discover with Timothy YouTube Channel

 Discover with Timothy Food Channel

 Learn Penang Hokkien YouTube Channel

SojiMart Videos

 Share your travels and/or ask a travel-related question

Join the Penang Travel Tips Facebook Group to share photos, tips and anything related to your travels, or ask travel-related questions.

Map of Roads in Penang

Looking for information on Penang? Use this Map of Roads in Penang to zoom in on information about Penang, brought to you road by road.

Discover with Timothy

Let me take you to explore and discover Penang through my series of walking tours on YouTube. You may use these videos as your virtual tour guide. At the beginning of each video, I provide the starting point coordinates which you may key into your GPS, Google Maps or Waze, to be navigated to where I start the walk, and use the video as your virtual tour guide.

Disclaimer

Please use the information on this page as guidance only. The author endeavours to update the information on this page from time to time, but regrets any inaccuracies if there be any.

Latest from Discover with Timothy: Gurney Bay - what to see and do there

About this website



Hello and thanks for reading this page. My name is Timothy and my hobby is in describing places so that I can share the information with the general public. My website has become the go to site for a lot of people including students, teachers, journalists, etc. whenever they seek information on places, particularly those in Malaysia and Singapore. I have been doing this since 5 January 2003, for over twenty years already. You can read about me at Discover Timothy. By now I have compiled information on thousands of places, mostly in Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, and I continue to add more almost every day. My goal is to describe every street in every town in Malaysia and Singapore.

Copyright © 2003-2024 Timothy Tye. All Rights Reserved.