Muzaffarabad, Capital city in Azad Kashmir, Pakistan.
Muzaffarabad is the capital of Azad Kashmir in northeastern Pakistan, sitting at 737 meters (2,418 feet) elevation where the Jhelum and Neelum rivers meet. The town spreads through a valley surrounded by forested hills, with residential areas climbing the slopes.
Sultan Muzaffar Khan founded the settlement in 1646 as a defensive outpost against possible advances from the Mughal Empire. He built the Red Fort on a hill that controlled the approach roads for centuries.
The name comes from Sultan Muzaffar Khan, who founded the settlement in the seventeenth century and gave it his title. Residents speak several regional languages in daily life, with Pahari and Kashmiri heard alongside Urdu in markets and neighborhoods.
Buses and minibuses connect the town with Islamabad in roughly four hours, while rickshaws and local buses run within the city. Roads follow the river courses and pass through narrow valleys that can become difficult after heavy rain.
The earthquake of 2005 destroyed much of the older fabric and shaped the current townscape through the rebuilding that followed. Many buildings from that period are lower and wider to better withstand future tremors.
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