Kangxiwar


Kangxiwar is the location of a deserted town on the southwest side of the Kunlun Mountains. It is on the Karakash River in the western Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China. According to Chinese sources, Kangxiwar means "place with mine" in Uyghur.
Present day, there is a highway maintenance crew house and a military cemetery located here. China National Highway 219, the Xinjiang-Tibet Highway, runs through here. Following the G219 southeast will lead to Dahongliutan and Tianshuihai, the latter of which is in Aksai Chin. China National Highway 580 is under construction connecting Kangxiwar directly with Hotan. It is scheduled to be completed in 2022.
Kangxiwar Daban or Koshbel Pass is a mountain pass located at the elevation of downstream to the west.

History

Before modern era, the area was a thoroughfare of the caravan trade route between Leh and Tarim Basin. The Hindutash Pass, a historical mountain pass through the Kunlun Mountains is just north of here. This place was previously referred to as Sumgal. Literally meaning "three fords" in Tibetic languages, it was a historical ford along with caravan camp. The caravan camp which had a shed was located slightly downstream to the west on the north bank of the Karakash River Another camp Ak-Koom was located slightly upstream to the east at the joining of two valleys. During the 1860s at the time of Dungan Revolt, lawlessness led to the valley being frequented by Kyrgyz robbers who would capture caravans and sell the caravaners into slavery in Badakshan. A fort was setup down stream to the west at Xaidulla to help protect the caravans.
By the 1930s, it was recorded by European travelers that a settlement of Kyrgyz nomads was located at Kangxiwar.
During the 1962 Sino-Indian War, the PLA's Xinjiang Military Region headquarter was operated out of Kangxiwar, although certain activities were supervised directly by People's Liberation Army General Staff Department. The Chinese soldiers who perished during the Indo-China war were buried at a military cemetery in Kangxiwar along the G219 highway. The cemetery contains the graves of over 100 PLA soldiers.