Road Threatens Site of Ancient Afghan City

June 29, 2009 -- An important archaeological site in northern Afghanistan that was occupied by humans as far back as the sixth century B.C. is being threatened by the construction of a road, archaeologists warn.

The picturesque Cheshma-e-Shafa gorge in the northern province of Balkh is just one of several ancient sites faced with destruction by a post-Taliban push for development, they say.

This is despite laws in place to protect the country's heritage.

Traces of ancient human habitation were discovered in 2007 at Cheshma-e-Shafa, about 30 kilometers (20 miles) southwest of the city of Mazar-i-Sharif, says the French Archaeological Delegation in Afghanistan (DAFA).

They were found to date back to the Achaemenid period (sixth to fourth century B.C.), named after the first Persian dynasty that reigned over the area until its removal by Alexander the Great.

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But a South Korean company has been contracted by the government to build a road through the site, said DAFA director Roland Besenval, heading excavations.

"We had stopped the bulldozers by putting ourselves in front of them, but they restarted the work the next day," he told AFP.

"They could divert the road towards the east, but clearly they don't want to.

"Afghan laws prohibit the destruction of archaeological sites. The ministry of public works knows about all of this, the ministry of culture too," he said.