Amir Habibullah in Peshawar, 1905

Mohmand Blockade 1916-17

In the latter half of 1916 the Mohmands began to give trouble to the British, and a blockade of their frontier was organised, with barbed, and live wire to make it effective. The Blockade was made up of a series of blockhouses and barbed wire defenses manned by men of the British and Indian Armies along the British border of Mohmand territory. The most important engagement between Mohmands and British occurred on 15th November where at the Third Affair of Hafiz Kor. The Mohmand blockade was raised in July 1917 after making a settlement with the hostile sections

1917: The British blockade of the Mohmand tribe of Pashtuns ; the Michini checkpoint.

Mohmand Blockade Operations, November 1916 onwards. The permanent police post built in the corner of Subhan Khwar Camp on the road between Fort Shabkadar and Michni. Imperial War Museum.

Waziristan 1917, British war against mehsuds

The short-lived Afghan invasion of British India in May 1919 was repulsed by the Army in India, but the ensuing tribal rising in Waziristan (where various militias raised to police tribal territory had mutinied) was a far more difficult proposition . Heavy casualties were inflicted on the Britsih Indian troops when punitive operations were carried out in the winter of 1919-20. In the heaviest fighting ever witnessed in tribal territory, imperial troops were defeated at Palosina between 19th-21st December 1919 by Mahsud and Wazir lashkars. A skilful combination of fire and movement was employed with deadly effect against British army by tribesmen who engaged in hand-to-hand combat whenever an opportunity offered. (See Despatch by His Excellency General Sir Charles Carmichael Monro on the Operations in Waziristan 1919-1920, (Simla, 1920) and Operations in Waziristan 1919-1920, (Calcutta, 1921)
Following pictures are from British perspective.


A Mahsud village burnt by British 1917


A downed RFC airplane. South Waziristan 1917


A Gurkha mercenary with his Kukri.

Afridi Marksman, khyber pass

Pathan Woman

An armed gaurd, NWFP, 1936

Grave of Malalai of Maiwand

Grave of Malalai of Maiwand. Photo taken by Anthony Fitzherbert. Via Farrukh Husain

At the battle of Maiwand a legendary Pashtun heroine, Malalai, is said to have used her veil as a standard, and encouraged the warriors by shouting the following couplet in Pashto ;

کہ پہ میوند کے شہید نہ شوے
گرانہ لالیہ بے نگئی تہ دے ساتینہ

 Young love, if you do not fall in the battle of Maiwand,
By God, someone is saving you for a token of shame.

" The only British prisoner of war captured by the Afghans [after the battle of Mainwand], was interestingly enough detained by Afghan women. A British Lieutenant, named Maclaine, asked some Afghan women at a well for water. He was struck from behind by a well-aimed water pot in the hands of one of the Afghan damsels and they all pounced upon him and took him prisoner. It is noteworthy that while the role of Malalai leading the men into combat is hailed in Afghanistan, the role of other women such as the courageous ladies who took Maclaine prisoner does not have much, if any exposure. What the capture of Maclaine shows is that women at Maiwand would not hesitate to attack the occupation forces. Today some cast doubt on whether Malalai actually led men into battle against the British. I would point out that in this same region during the first Afghan war a woman led men into battle against British forces. Therefore it is quite probable that the Malalai incident happened as detailed according to what is seen by some as a historic legend or nationalistic tale." ["Maiwand and Malalai — Afghanistan’s lady liberty" by Farrukh Husain]

Collecting stones to place on Malalai's grave. Photo taken by Anthony Fitzherbert. Via Farrukh Husain

The graves of the martyrs of the Battle of Maiwand. Photo taken by Anthony Fitzherbert. Via Farrukh Husain

An imaginative portrait of Malalai of Maiwand. Artist unknown, c. 1950. Published by the Kabul Magazine. Via Nafees Ur Rehman

Khyber Knife (Salawar/Charay)

The Khyber is more properly called a Charay (equivalently, charas, churea, salawar yatagan). Also referred to as a “Khyber”, in reference to the treacherous mountain pass to Afghanistan where the Pashtun tribes reside, the salawar is well known to every army that has attempted to conquer the tribes of Afghanistan. With its distinctive T-shaped blade, it is exceptionally strong all along its length and ideal for piercing armor as well as cutting attacks. This style of blade can also be found in the salawar’s small cousins, the choora and pesh-kabz. Khyber swords and the smaller knife variant, the Choora, typical of the Pashtun tribes of the Khyber pass region of Afghanistan. The scabbard is worn thrust, unsecured, in a number of positions under a belt with blades ranging from 14” to 30” in length.



1) A'Khyber knife', as used by the Pashtun (or Pathan) tribes in the area of the Khyber Pass in the border region between eastern Afghanistan and the Northwest Frontier Province of Pakistan. 2) A kris dagger from Bali, Indonesia



Khyber Knife, Afghanistan


19th Century Khyber knife

Wali khan - pictures

Field marshal Ayub khan - pictures

Afridis - old pictures

An afridi village

Waziristan - Old pictures

Khattaks - old pictures

khattak dancer

Bannu declaration 1947 for Azad Pashtunistan

Map of Durrani Empire at its Peak, 1761