UNESCO warns of risks to Afghanistan’s historic Minaret of Jam

The UNESCO Kabul Office has warned that Afghanistan’s historic Minaret of Jam faces serious threats from natural hazards and conservation challenges, highlighting the need for continued efforts to protect the UNESCO World Heritage Site.

In a Facebook post, the office said UNESCO, with funding from the ALIPH Foundation, has made progress in monitoring the minaret’s condition, mitigating flood risks and supporting the local community.

Regular analysis of data collected through structural monitoring equipment allows specialists to assess the monument’s stability and inform long-term conservation plans, the office said.

The completion of a bridge in the area was also hailed as an important milestone, improving access for emergency response and providing local communities with safer and more reliable connections.

Meanwhile, the Aga Khan Foundation, with support from the ALIPH Foundation, is carrying out additional work to strengthen the minaret’s structural stability and ensure its long-term preservation.

UNESCO stressed that protecting the monument requires sustained commitment, technical expertise and international cooperation.

It said safeguarding the Minaret of Jam is essential to preserving an irreplaceable part of Afghanistan’s history and a shared cultural legacy for future generations.

The Minaret of Jam is one of Afghanistan’s most important historical monuments and a remarkable example of medieval Islamic architecture.

It stands in a remote valley in Ghor province, where the Hari Rud and Jam Rud rivers meet, surrounded by rugged mountains.

Built in the 12th century, the minaret is famous for its intricate brickwork, decorative inscriptions and geometric patterns. Rising approximately 65 metres, it is considered one of the finest surviving examples of Ghurid-era architecture and reflects the cultural and architectural achievements of the Ghurid dynasty, which ruled parts of present-day Afghanistan and the surrounding region.

The minaret was built around 1194 under the Ghurid sultan Ghiyath al-Din Muhammad. Its design and decoration influenced the development of Islamic architecture beyond Afghanistan, including the Qutb Minar in Delhi, India.

UNESCO added the Minaret of Jam to both its World Heritage List and its List of World Heritage in Danger in 2002.