The 16 short tandem repeat systems D3S1358, VWA, FGA, TH01, TPOX, CSF1PO, D5S818, D13S317, D7S820, ACTBP2, D2S1338, D16S539, D19S433, D21S11, D18S51 and D8S1179 were amplified in a population sample composed of 333 immigrants from Afghanistan. The 16 loci met Hardy-Weinberg expectations and possess a combined matching probability of 1 in 3.6 x 10(14) and a combined mean exclusion chance greater than 0.9996 in this Afghan population. Approximately 12,000 meiotic transfers were investigated and 19 mutations were observed in the repeat units of FGA (n=6), ACTBP2 (n=5), D3S1358 (n=2), D5S818 (n=2), D7S820 (n=2), VWA (n=1) and D8S1179 (n=1).