Afghanistan's Wakhan Corridor: Peace Amid the Chaos

Benjamin Rasmussen has spent time photographing Afghanistan's Wakhan Corridor, which is located in the north east corner of Afghanistan. Here, A Wakhi shepherd collects firewood in the Big Pamir Mountains.

Rasmussen says that the Wakhan Corridor is unlike anyplace else in Afghanistan.

A Wakhi shepherd separates baby goats and sheep from their mothers in the Big Pamir Mountains.

Two people groups reside in this region and live in isolation from the outside world.

The Kyrgyz live on the high peaks of the Pamir Mountains and the Wakhi live in the valleys below.

The Panj River flows through the Big Pamir mountains of the Wakhan Corridor, forming the border between Afghanistan and Tajikistan.

A Wakhi woman stands with her family in the village of Ghaz Khan. The Wakhan Corridor and the surrounding province of Badakshan have one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world.

A child collects donkey dung to use for fires in Afghanistan's Wakhan Corridor.

Wakhi shepherds and horsemen warm themselves by a fire in their yurt in the Big Pamir Mountains after a bringing in their sheep, goats, yaks and horses for the evening.

Horns are piled together on a rock in the Wakhan Corridor.

A Wakhi shepherd holds a baby yak away from his mother so that she can be milked. in the Big Pamir Mountains in the Wakhan Corridor. The shepherds live in the mountains during the spring and summer with their herds, living off of milk and bread.

The Wakhan Corridor has little interaction with foreign forces or the Taliban and therefor exists outside of the turmoil that inhabits most of Afghanistan.

Boys take a break from playing in the village of Ghaz Khan in the Wakhan Corridor. Schooling has recently been made accessible in most villages, making this new generation the first to benefit from widespread education and stability.

A shepherd looks out over the Wakhan Corridor.

A lamb stands outside of the yurt of Wakhi shepherds in the Big Pamir Mountains in the Wakhan Corridor.

A young Wahki shepherd stands next to a sheep and goat pen after herding the flock in for the night on the Big Pamir Mountains.

A Wakhi horseman leads his horse back to his home in the village of Ghaz Khan in the Wakhan Corridor.

A Kyrgyz trader feeds his yaks in the village of Ghaz Khan in the Wakhan Corridor. He traveled down from the Pamir Mountains with men from his tribe to trade livestock for supplies when summer snow melts made the trip possible.

A Kyrgyz horseman prepares to go and check on his herd of sheep and goats outside of the village of Ghaz Khan. The Pamir Kyrgyz live at high elevations on the Pamir Mountains and leave only during the spring and summer months. For more from Rasmussen, please visit <a href="http://www.benjaminrasmussenphoto.com/">benjaminrasmussenphoto.com</a>.