Kabul urges Europe to stop forced deportations of Afghans for three months
Afghanistan has urged European countries to stop the forced deportations of Afghan migrants for the next three months, as its security forces battle a Taliban offensive.
“The escalation of violence by the Taliban terrorist group and the spread of the third wave of [Covid-19] have caused a great deal of economic and social unrest, creating concerns and challenges for the people,” Afghanistan’s Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation said on Saturday.
“The government’s decision emphasises that host countries should refrain from forcibly deporting Afghan refugees ... for the next three months.” The ministry said that the forced return of Afghans from Europe was worrying.
The UN said on Sunday that the conflict was causing more suffering across Afghanistan and called for financial aid to help the war-torn country.
Afghanistan is facing a crisis as the insurgents gain territory, stretching government forces and leading to a new wave of internally displaced families, complicated by a renewed outbreak of Covid-19.
There were almost 2.5 million registered refugees from Afghanistan in 2018. It was the second-largest refugee population in the world, the UN refugee agency said. The vast majority are in neighbouring Pakistan, followed by Iran and Europe.
Although more than 570 Afghan
refugees voluntarily returned to the country between January and March this year, aided by the UN, only six came from outside Pakistan and Iran, the UN agency said.
Afghans make up a large share of EU asylum seekers, with 44,190 first-time applications last year, out of 416,600, the EU’s statistics agency Eurostat said. Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi last month said Europe should brace for more migrants from Afghanistan after foreign forces leave the country.
This year, several EU countries agreed to offer asylum to Afghans who worked with foreign troops and are at risk of revenge from the Taliban. Afghanistan recorded more than 1,000 cases of Covid-19 on Sunday, its Health Ministry said.
Almost 135,000 cases and more than 5,700 deaths have been reported since the pandemic began, with the country relying on donations from the international community to vaccinate its population.
Ramiz Alakbarov, the UN deputy special representative for Afghanistan, said the country was also facing increased difficulties with the growing conflict since the Taliban launched their offensive.
“Pre-existing humanitarian needs are further exacerbated,” Mr Alakbarov said.
He said that at least half of the country’s 33.5 million people needed humanitarian help.
“Escalation of military activities and escalation of conflict and war is causing more suffering,” Mr Alakbarov said.
The US official said that so far this year 25 humanitarian aid workers had been killed while delivering vital aid to those in need.
Mr Alakbarov called for continued financial support to help Afghanistan, adding that $450 million had come so far as global donations after an appeal for $1.3 billion for this year.
“The needs are so much greater,” he said.
The escalation of military activities and the escalation of conflict and war is causing more suffering
RAMIZ ALAKBAROV
UN official