October 12, 2007

 

Overview

 

Afghan authorities begin reviewing private security firms amid allegations of abuse

Afghan authorities have begun their crackdown against private security firms accused of abuse and operating with impunity in Afghanistan. On Tuesday (October 9), authorities shut down two Afghan-run security companies, Watan and Caps, and recovered some 82 illegal weapons during two separate raids in the capital, Kabul. An anonymous western security official told the Associated Press (AP) that more than 10 other security firms, some of which are suspected of murder and robbery, will soon be shut down. He said some western companies were also on the list of those soon to be shut down. Besides high-profile US security firms such as Blackwater and Dyncorps, dozens of other security companies, some of which may not be known even to the Afghan government, also operate in Afghanistan. According to Lieutenant Colonel Todd Vician, spokesman for the US defense department, the US military employs some 29,000 private contractors in Afghanistan for a variety of goods and services, of which some 1,000 are security contractors. According to some western officials, some 10,000 security guards operate in Kabul alone and Afghan authorities have little idea who some of these guards are. According to the Afghan interior ministry, some 59 Afghan and international security companies have registered with them. However, according to some estimates, as many as 25 other security companies could also be operating in the country. According to Kabul police chief Ali Shah Paktiawal, some of the 59 registered security firms are suspected of involvement in criminal activity such as killings and robbery, and police are investigating these cases.

 

Nearly two dozen killed in violence across Afghanistan

Almost two dozen people were killed in separate incidents of violence across Afghanistan this week. Up to four policemen were killed and more than 10 others wounded in a roadside bomb attack near a mosque in Gereshk district in southern Helmand province today (Friday, October 12). Hundreds of people had gathered for Eid al-Fitr prayer marking the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and the beginning of three-day celebrations. A roadside bomb aimed at an Afghan police convoy wounded four police officers in Kandahar on Wednesday (October 10). At least two people were killed and more than 10 wounded when unidentified gunmen opened fire on people praying in a remote mosque in Sayed Abad district in central Wardak province Tuesday (October 9) night. Provincial officials suspect the Taliban to be behind the attack. Unidentified assailants also gunned down a pro-government cleric in neighboring Logar province Tuesday night while he was on his way home from the mosque. Afghan and NATO-led forces also killed at least eight suspected Taliban militants in an overnight clash in Zhari district in southern Kandahar province. Security forces also detained three militants. There were no reports of casualties among NATO or Afghan forces. On Saturday (October 6), at least five Afghan civilians and a US soldier were killed in a suicide attack on a US-led convoy near Kabul airport. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack. Also Saturday, two policemen were killed in a suicide bombing in eastern Khost province. This year has been the worst in violence since the ouster of the Taliban regime in late 2001. More than 5,100 people, mostly militants, have reportedly died in insurgency-related violence across Afghanistan this year.

 

Taliban frees German hostage in prisoner swap

On Wednesday (October 10), Afghanistan's Taliban militants freed Rudolf Blechschmidt, a 62-year-old German, and four Afghan colleagues who were abducted nearly three months ago. Six men, including two Germans and four Afghans, were abducted on July 18 in central Wardak province. One of the Germans was shot dead by the Taliban shortly after reportedly suffering a heart attack. The release of the hostages came in exchange for the release of five alleged Taliban criminals held in Afghan prisons. Blechschmidt is reportedly in good health and has since flown back to Germany. Mohammad Naeem, head of Jaghato district, said the exchange took place at the government intelligence office in the provincial capital, Maidan Shah, some 37 miles (60 kilometers) east of the capital, Kabul. He said the prisoners that were freed in exchange for the hostages were related to the kidnappers, but none of them were "very important Taliban commanders." Mullah Baheer, a Taliban commander who was involved in the kidnappings, confirmed the release, saying that they had successfully completed a prisoner swap. German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier thanked Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Foreign Minister Rangeen Dadfar Spanta for their "tireless and ultimately successful efforts" for Blechschmidt's release. Steinmeier said, "We are all pleased and relieved" by the release of the hostages.

 

UN and Afghan authorities pre-position aid ahead of harsh winter

UN agencies and Afghan authorities are pre-positioning humanitarian relief aid in 18 provinces ahead of the country's harsh winter, when heavy snowfall and rains often impede road access. Under a joint program entitled Winterization 2007-2008 adopted by the Afghan government and the UN, stakeholders have been assigned specific responsibilities. Afghanistan's Ministry of Rehabilitation and Development and Public Works is responsible for keeping the roads open and clear of snow. The Afghan defense ministry has designated two helicopters for use in possible evacuation operations. The Afghan health ministry in conjunction with the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) is supplying rural health facilities with chlorine, sachets of oral dehydration salts and other medications. The World Food Program has already pre-positioned 10,000 tons of food in various vulnerable provinces and plans to dispatch an additional 10,000 tons in the near future. Afghanistan's National Emergency Commission (NEC) is seeking US$3.5 million to provide health and non-food items to at least 30,000 families in disaster-prone provinces such as Badakhshan, Ghor and Daykundi. NEC authorities are calling upon the warring parties in the country to allow humanitarian access to all parts of the country, particularly the restive south and east, to allow aid workers to ease suffering due to natural and man-made disasters.

Movement

 

2007: Pakistan has reportedly extended the deadline to close Jalozai camp until March 2008. (IRIN, Sep. 4). The UNHCR has asked Pakistan to temporarily suspend closure of Jalozai refugee camp in the North West Frontier Province (NWFP) that was originally scheduled to be closed on August 31. UNHCR said due to the fast approaching Muslim holy month of Ramadan and winter season, conditions were not conducive for the return of some 100,000 camp residents. UNHCR said any forceful return of these refugees could lead to secondary displacement.

 

Pakistan to close all Afghan refugee camps by December 2009 and to repatriate all refugees living in the country. UNHCR says it has repatriated over 306,000 Afghan refugees from Pakistan so far this year under its voluntary repatriation campaign. (UNHCR, Aug. 10)

 

4.2 million refugees have returned to Afghanistan, and 500,000 IDPs returned home since early 2002. Close to 3 million of the refugees returned from Pakistan. 2.6 million Afghans remain in Pakistan, including one million in 74 long-term camps. About 1.5 million Afghans returned from Iran; Taking into account unassisted returns, perhaps 600,000 to 700,000 Afghans remain in Iran—up to 30,000 are in seven camps.

 

Iran deported some 85,000 unregistered refugees to Afghanistan during April 21 - May 14, 2007. Iranian officials say they plan to initially send back 500,000 of over a million illegal refugees in the country. Earlier this week, Iran said it has reached an agreement with the Afghan government to slow down the pace of expulsions for illegal Afghans living in the country.

 

Some 200,000 Afghan refugees in Pakistan have returned to their homes under the UN-assisted voluntary Afghan refugee repatriation program since it resumed on March 1, 2007, following a seasonal winter suspension. Pakistani authorities say voluntary repatriation of Afghan refugees in Pakistan that are without proof of registration (PoR) ended this week (April 15), and refugees remaining in the country without PoR are now considered illegal and subject to government action. Repatriation campaign for Afghan refugees with PoR

 

2006: UNHCR expects to assist 550,000 returnees—400,000 from Pakistan and 150,000 from Iran. However, so far this year only some 60,000 Afghan refugees have repatriated from Pakistan. Unassisted returns are a factor from Pakistan and have been a major contributor to returns from Iran. The tripartite arrangement among UNHCR-Afghanistan-Pakistan is good through 2006; The UNHCR-Afghanistan-Iran Joint Program has been extended into 2007. Repatriation from Pakistan, halted for the winter, recommenced on March 1. UNHCR assisted nearly 9,000 refugees in returning from Pakistan and over 500 from Iran during March. In April 2006, Pakistan will close two long-term camps in NWFP, and two in Baluchistan Province with 250,000 long-term residents. Refugees in Baluchistan can either return to Afghanistan or relocate to Mohammad Kheil camp near Quetta. Refugees in NWFP are moving to Afghanistan or one of ten camps in NWFP—refugees are pushing for a one-year delay.

 

2005 plans called for 400,000 Afghan refugees to return home from Pakistan and 200,000 from Iran, down from an earlier 350,000 estimated from Iran. 453,000 returned from Pakistan. 67,000 from Iran were assisted and over 210,000 returned on their own to Iran for a total of nearly 280,000, and a combined Pakistan and Iran total of 733,000—close to the original projection.

 

2004 plans were for one million to return. Actual returnees were around 850,000, with 385,000 from Pakistan and 460,000 from Iran, including 80,000 spontaneous returns. Pakistan closed camps in South Waziristan and all new camps, with remaining new refugees going to Mohamed Kheil camp in Baluchistan Province.

Emphasis in 2003 was on repatriation from old camps and cities in Pakistan to rural areas in Afghanistan. 70% of returnees from Pakistan were from cities and 30% from camps. Over a third returned to Kabul, another 10% went to other central provinces, and just over 20% returned to each of the north and east. The Southern region received 6% and the Western region 4%. The 2003 peak months were June and July.

 

In 2002 over 2.3 million Afghan refugees returned with 2 million assisted by UNHCR. UNHCR repatriated 1.53 million Afghan refugees from Pakistan, including 125,000 from Baluchistan and 1.4 million from the North West Frontier Province. 82% were from urban areas; only 3% were from new camps. 265,000 refugees were assisted in returning from Iran; and 10,000 refugees from the central Asian republics.

 

 

Afghanistan Relief Efforts: United Nations Coordination Regions

 

 

 

 

 

Central Region

 

East Central Region

 

 

 

Eastern Region