Hopes for revival pinned on old palace restoration

After years of abandonment, the ruined Darul Aman palace in Kabul, one of the most recognizable symbols of Afghanistan's decades of war, is to be restored in a project authorities hope will come to symbolize revival instead of destruction.

The aim is an ambitious one, with Afghan forces fighting the Taliban insurgency across the country, Kabul regularly hit by suicide attacks and the broken economy seemingly in no better shape than the bombed-out palace itself.

The project was launched by President Ashraf Ghani in May and Urban Development Minister Sadat Mansoor Naderi said the government hoped the site, next to a new, Indian-financed parliament, can become the center of a new government quarter as well as a tourist attraction.