Musa Qala
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Musa Qala موسی کلا |
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| Town | |
Afghan National Army (ANA) patrolling alongside U.S. Marines in Musa Qala (2010)
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 Musa Qala
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| Coordinates: 32°26′35.88″N 64°44′39.84″E / 32.4433000°N 64.7444000°ECoordinates: 32°26′35.88″N 64°44′39.84″E / 32.4433000°N 64.7444000°E | |
| Country |
 Afghanistan
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| Province | Helmand Province |
| District | Musa Qala District |
| Elevation | 1,043 m (3,422 ft) |
| Time zone | Afghanistan Standard Time (UTC+4:30) |
Musa Qala (Pashto: موسی کلا ; "Fortress of Moses") is a town and the district center of Musa Qala District in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. It sits at 32°26′36″N 64°44′40″E / 32.4433°N 64.7444°E and at 1043 m altitude in the valley of Musa Qala River in the central western part of the district. Its population has been reported in the British press to be both 2,000 and 20,000. It is in a desolate area, populated by native Pashtun tribes.
With virtually no rainfall during the year, Musa Qala features a cold desert climate (BWk) under the Köppen climate classification. The average temperature in Musa Qala is 17.6 °C, while the annual precipitation averages 159 mm.
July is the warmest month of the year with an average temperature of 30.3 °C. The coldest month January has an average temperature of 4.7 °C.
In February 2006 intensive fighting erupted there, leading to 28 deaths, including the Musa Qala district chief, Abdul Quddus. On March 3, 2006, the Sangin district governor, Amir Jan, was killed in Musa Qala while on vacation.British forces were deployed to defend the district offices at Musa Qala (and also at Sangin, Nawzad and Kajaki). Over several months, eight British soldiers died there during attacks by the Taliban. July 23–25, 2006, Danish troops of the "1. Lette Opklaringseskadron" (1st Light Reconnaissance Squadron, 120 men) moved in to replace the British troops, but found themselves having to assist the British troops repel a major Taliban attack before they could carry out the replacement. On 28 August 2006, the Danish forces were replaced as planned—if slightly belated—and were once again replaced by the British.
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Wikipedia