Associated Press: The Wakhan corridor, which has been named Afghanistan’s second national park, is the country’s most — perhaps only — peaceful region. But it is so poor, even for Afghanistan, that people get food on credit or barter for it, and children go barefoot during the long, harsh winters. The Ismaili Shiite Muslim community here also fears being targeted by the nearby Sunni Taliban — so much that many women in Iskashim, the town at the mouth of the valley, have started to wear the all-covering burqa. Click here to read more (external link).