Taliban begin relocating internally displaced people from Kabul

By S. K. Khan

ISLAMABAD (AA) - The Taliban officials in Afghanistan on Saturday began the relocation of thousands of internally displaced persons from the capital Kabul to their native northern provinces.

The displaced families had left homes due to deadly clashes between the Taliban and the security forces of the former government.

Abdul Matin Rahimzay, the Taliban’s head of refugees and returnees affairs in Kabul, said that about 1,005 displaced families from the Shahr-e-Naw Park in downtown Kabul have been relocated in collaboration with different aid agencies.

Last month, the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, warned that a major humanitarian crisis is looming in Afghanistan amid a freeze on aid in connection with the Taliban's takeover.

According to the UNHCR estimates, nearly 300,000 Afghans have been internally displaced due to the conflict in 2020 alone and they remain in acute need of humanitarian support, as do the nearly 3 million previously displaced, along with 9 million people who have lost their livelihoods due to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis.

During his latest visit to the war-ravaged country last month, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi recalled that after more than 40 years, Afghan refugees continue to make up one of the largest and most protracted displacement situations.