LASHKARGAH-BOST

Lashkargah is the capital of the Helmand Province, built around the Helmand Arghandab Valley Authority which seeks to transform the deserts of the region into fertile fields as green as they were centuries ago before conquerors and anarchy consigned them to their present bareness.
Ancient Bost is recognized in the Zproastian hymns of the AVESTA, in Achaemenid town lists and in 1st Century accounts. These references, however, are vague but there is no doubt that the citadel was taken by Arab conquerors around 661 A. D. In the 19th Century, the city grew to become the second city of the southwest. An Arab traveler in the middle of the 11the century describes the city as: "…one of the principle cities in the province of Seistan, except Zaranj, no city is larger is larger. The inhabitants are polite and generous… it is a city well supplied with provision, fruits and dates." From the 11th until the middle of the 12th Century Bost prospered as the winter capital of the Ghaznavids, was burned and looted in 1151 by the Ghorids and then completely demolished by Genghis Khan in 1220.
Today the remains of the great palace of Masoud still give the visitor an idea of the splendor of the court of what was then the greatest Empire of the East. The most remarkable monument is the magnificently decorated arch, which has a span of 80 feet.

Note: Unfortunately, most of these historical sites were severely damaged by two decades of war and armed conflicts in Afghanistan.