1970s, and Ralph Pinder-Wilson completed his major study of the site in the same decade, before the Soviet invasion of 1979 once again cut off outside access. 2022 earthquake On January 17, 2022, an earthquake struck western Afghanistan, killing 28 people. The earthquake caused bricks to fall from the tower and it is now at an even further risk of collapsing. Inscriptional content The uppermost band consists of the Muslim confession of faith, the shahada; "I bear witness there is no god but Allah (and that) Muhammad is the messenger of Allah." Below this, are upper two bands that consists of verse 13, surat al-Saff LXI;"Help from Allah and present victory. Give good tidings (O Muhammad) to believers. O ye who believe." The band below this consists of names and titles of Ghiyath ad-Din Muhammad bin Sam Located below this is a band containing an amplified version of Ghiyath ad-Din Muhammad's names and titles in turquoise mosaic tiles. An oblong hexagon with two lines of naskhi underneath, (1)"The work of 'Ali ibn...", (2)undeciphered An inscription, "Abu'l-Fath", heavily damaged, due to being made of stucco. Interlaced bands consisting of surat Maryam XIX. Facing north is a Kufic inscription, "On the date of the year five hundred ninety"(equivalent of 27 December 1193 to 16 December 1194). Threats The Minaret of Jam is threatened by erosion, water infiltration and floods, due to its proximity to the Hari and Jam Rivers. Another threat is the earthquakes that happen frequently in the region. The tower has been tilting, and stabilisation work has been carried out at various times. Following his 2002 visit, British explorer and future Member of Parliament Rory Stewart reported that looters and illegal excavations had also damaged the archaeological site surrounding the minaret. On 21 July 2018 Pajhwok News reported Taliban clashes with local forces at checkpoints near the Minaret of Jam in a 6-hour long skirmish. The militants set the forests surrounding the historic district on fire, damaging a mosque. Ghor Director of Culture and Information Fakhruddin Ariapoor expressed concern at the instability in the area, stating that some parts of the green area were damaged; and although the minaret remained intact, warned that if the central government did not pay due attention to the security of the site, the militants would destroy it. Conservation The minaret was largely rediscovered in 1958 by French explorers. From its finding to the early