Alarm has been signaled to UN on the possibility of an increase in displaced civilians in Afghanistan after the withdrawal of US and international forces from the war-torn country in September, as revealed on Monday (14/6) the High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grady.
Violence is on the rise in Afghanistan as international forces begin withdrawing and efforts to reach a peace agreement between the Taliban and Kabul have stalled.
Grady referred to the bloody attack last week against an international demining organization in the north Afghanistan, from which 10 people were killed.
“It is a tragic sign of the kind of violence that may flare up again in Afghanistan, and with the withdrawal of international forces it is likely to worsen.”, he commented.
“That is why we are drawing up emergency plans to deal with new IDPs in neighboring countries in case people cross the border,” he said, without elaborating on the plans.
There are currently an estimated 2.5 million Afghan refugees worldwide, and another 4.8 million are internally displaced, according to the UNHCR, which is headed by Grady.
Twenty years later, the United States has begun withdrawing 2,500 troops from Afghanistan who remain in the country and intend to complete their withdrawal by 9/11. Some 7,000 troops from other countries – mostly NATO members – along with Australia, New Zealand and Georgia – also plan to leave the country by the same date.
Grady said strong international support was needed for peace talks between the Taliban and the Afghan government.
“Political action should replace conflict, but of course the risk (of further displacement) exists and we must be prepared.”, added as broadcast by the Athens News Agency, citing local media.
“What is needed is a high level of financial support to provide humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan in order to increase the chances that the Afghan authorities will be able to stabilize the situation,” said UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Mark Lukok. .
Earlier in June, the United States announced an additional $ 266 million in humanitarian aid to Afghanistan, bringing the total amount of aid it has provided to the country since 2002 to nearly $ 3.9 billion.
Some 18.4 million people, almost half the country’s population, are in need of humanitarian assistance, according to the United Nations, which has called for $ 1.3 billion to fund its operations in Afghanistan in 2021. has currently received only 23% of the amount.
Lukok noted that until a few years ago, the international community’s attention was focused on Afghanistan. But this has “diminished and is a problem” in the efforts of the UN and humanitarian organizations “to draw attention to the needs of Afghanistan and receive support” to meet them.
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