Republic of Afghanistan | ||||||||||
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Anthem Millī Surūd ملی سرود Afghan National Anthem |
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Capital | Kabul | |||||||||
Languages |
Pashto Persian |
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Religion | Sunni Islam | |||||||||
Government | One-party presidential republic | |||||||||
President | ||||||||||
• | 1973–1978 | Mohammed Daoud Khan | ||||||||
Legislature | Loya Jirga | |||||||||
Historical era | Cold War | |||||||||
• | Coup d'état | 17 July 1973 | ||||||||
• | Saur Revolution | 30 April 1978 | ||||||||
Area | ||||||||||
• | 1978 | 647,500 km² (250,001 sq mi) | ||||||||
Population | ||||||||||
• | 1978 est. | 13,199,600 | ||||||||
Density | 20.4 /km² (52.8 /sq mi) | |||||||||
Currency | Afghani | |||||||||
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The Republic of Afghanistan (Dari: جمهوری افغانستان, Jǝmhūri Afġānistān; Pashto: د افغانستان جمهوریت, Dǝ Afġānistān Jumhūriyat) was the name of the first republic of Afghanistan, created in 1973 after Mohammed Daoud Khan deposed his cousin, King Mohammad Zahir Shah, in a non-violent coup. Daoud was known for his progressive politics and attempts to modernise the country with help from both the Soviet Union and the United States, among others.
In 1978, a military coup known as the Saur Revolution took place, instigated by the communist People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan, in which Daoud and his family were killed. The "Daoud Republic" was subsequently succeeded by the Soviet-allied Democratic Republic of Afghanistan.
The current official name of Afghanistan is Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.
In July 1973, while Mohammed Zahir Shah was in Italy undergoing eye surgery as well as therapy for lumbago, his cousin and former Prime Minister Mohammed Daoud Khan staged a coup d'état and established a republican government. Daoud Khan had been forced to resign as prime minister by Zahir Shah a decade earlier. The king abdicated the following month rather than risk an all-out civil war.