October 24, 2008

Overview

More than 200 killed in security operations across Afghanistan

More than 200 people were reported dead this week due to insurgency-related violence across Afghanistan, including at least 140 in southern provinces. Among the deadliest incidents was an overnight clash that began Tuesday (October 21) in the southern province of Uruzgan (Oruzgan). The US military said coalition and Afghan forces killed 55 insurgents in the attack in Deh Rawood district. On Wednesday (October 22), authorities said nine Afghan policemen had been killed overnight in a coalition air strike at a police checkpoint in the eastern province of Khost. A coalition statement said soldiers may have “mistakenly” killed some allied troops. US officials said they would meet with their Afghan counterparts to discuss the incident. Also among the dead this week were three US-led coalition soldiers killed by a roadside bomb in western Afghanistan late Wednesday. A statement from the US military did not release the nationalities of the soldiers or the location of the incident. The Associated Press (AP) said Friday (October 24) that so far this year more than 5,200 people have been killed in insurgency-related violence in Afghanistan. On Thursday (October 23), Reuters put the figure at about 4,000, saying that one-third of those killed were civilians. Analysts say these figures put 2008 on track to surpass 2007 as the deadliest year in Afghanistan since the US-led invasion in 2001. Last year, about 6,500 people were killed in Afghanistan. The AP’s report also said that at least 549 members of the US military have died in Afghanistan since the 2001 invasion, 397 of them due to hostile action. Separately, Gen. John Craddock, Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) for NATO, said Monday (October 20) that the war in Afghanistan cannot be won militarily alone, but through a comprehensive approach. He said the international community needs to come together because present efforts are "disjointed in time and space."  He said Afghan authorities must take concrete actions to tackle corruption, improve policing, institute an effective justice system and establish good governance, or else any military gains will be short-lived.

Afghan government urges security review following aid worker's shooting

The Afghan government is urging foreign nationals and aid workers to limit their movements following the fatal shooting of a foreign female aid worker in Kabul on Monday.  Siamak Hirawi, a spokesperson for Afghan President Hamid Karzai, told Agence France-Presse that in view of Monday's attack, the government has undertaken a review of its security measures for aid groups.  He said, "We also ask (that) all aid worker be more vigilant of their surroundings and be careful, to avoid unnecessary comings and goings."  Humayun Hamidzada, another spokesman for Karzai, urged non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to review their own security measures as well.  Gayle Williams, 34, a dual British and South African national working for the UK-based Christian aid group Serving Emergency Relief and Vocational Enterprises (SERVE), was gunned down by Taliban militants on a motorbike as she was walking to work.  The Taliban, who claimed responsibility for Williams' killing, accused her organization of spreading Christianity - a charge denied by the aid group.  Karzai, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the US White House all condemned Williams' killing.  The UN in recent months has warned about increasing attacks against aid workers and their adverse impact on humanitarian aid to vulnerable Afghan groups.  Over the past few months, many NGOs have pulled out of restive parts of southern Afghanistan amid worsening security.

More than 1,000 protest Taliban killings in eastern Afghanistan

In one of the largest anti-Taliban gatherings Afghanistan has seen since the overthrow of the hard-line regime in 2001, more than 1,000 civilians protested Friday against the slaying of at least 26 men by Taliban earlier this week, the Associated Press (AP) reported. The protest occurred in Mehtar Lam, the capital city of eastern Laghman province, home to most of the 26 bus passengers who were killed when the vehicle was stopped by Taliban militants as it passed through southern Kandahar province on Sunday (October 19). Conflicting reports said the killings may have occurred on October 16. According to the AP, no such demonstration has ever been held in Laghman, which lies just east of the capital, Kabul. In Sunday's incident, Taliban in Kandahar's Maiwand district, an area controlled by the militants, said they had stopped the bus and killed 26 of the estimated 40 passengers because they were members of Afghan security forces. At least six of the victims were beheaded. However, Afghan officials said there were no security personnel aboard the bus, only civilians on their way to look for work in neighboring Iran. The AP reported that the protesters in Mehtar Lam waved black flags of mourning Friday as they denounced the Taliban, whose ranks are made mostly of fellow Pashtuns, the dominant ethnic group in Afghanistan. According to the AP, the protest underscores a growing rivalry among Pashtuns and may provide an opportunity for international forces - who are facing declining support from the Afghan population due to civilian casualties in air strikes - to drive a wedge between the insurgents and civilians.

Movement

2008: UNHCR said in the first week of October that some 251,800 registered Afghan refugees in Pakistan and Iran had returned to their homes so far in 2008. Most of those repatriated (248,951) under the UN-assisted voluntary repatriation campaign came from Pakistan, while Iran accounted for 2,929 returns. (UNHCR, Oct-7)

Some 2,800 Pakistani families crossed the border into northeastern Afghanistan over the past two months to escape fighting between militants and Pakistani security forces in Bajur region.  Most of the people are reportedly in Kunar province.  (AFP, Sept-19)

UNHCR is asking Pakistan to revise its Afghan refugee repatriation plan, as the current plan to repatriate some 2.4 million refugees by the end of next year (2009) is “unworkable” due to persistent insecurity and lack of economic opportunities.  (BBC, Apr-18).  UNHCR said this week that since March 1, when the repatriation campaign resumed from Pakistan, more than 200,000 Afghan refugees have returned to Afghanistan. (UNHCR, Aug-4))

2007: UNHCR temporarily suspends the Afghan voluntary repatriation campaign in Pakistan until March 2008 due to seasonal slowdown.  (IRIN, Nov-2).  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 is 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 said voluntary repatriation of Afghan refugees in Pakistan that are without proof of registration (PoR) ended in April, 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 closed 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 percent of returnees from Pakistan were from cities and 30 percent from camps. Over a third returned to Kabul, another 10 percent went to other central provinces, and just over 20 percent returned to each of the north and east.  The Southern region received 6 percent and the Western region 4 percent. 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 percent were from urban areas; only 3 percent 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

Location	Central Region
Coordination
Population
IDP Movement
Food	There have been at least six attacks on World Food Program (WFP) food convoys in 2008, and WFP has temporarily suspended food delivery to Daikundi province.(IRIN, May-28)
Health	Czech Republic-led PRT to begin construction of a new 20-bed facility for the existing Comprehensive Health Clinic in Mohammad Agha in Lowgar province.  (NATO, Apr-24)
NFIs -Shelter	IOM, UNICEF, UNOCHA, & OXFAM
Water & Sanitation	UNICEF
Security	In Maydan Wardak province, ISAF troops backed by close air support killed at least 20 suspected Taliban insurgents during a two-day security operation in Jalrez district that began on October 16. (IHT, Reuters, Oct-20) In Ghazni city, capital of Ghazni province, unknown gunmen abducted two Bangladeshi aid workers near a government building on Thursday (October 23). (Reuters, Oct-23) US military officials reported Thursday that US Special Forces freed a kidnapped US civilian last week in the first known hostage rescue by US forces in Afghanistan. The civilian, who works for the US Army Corps of Engineers, was kidnapped in mid-August and was rescued October 15 in Wardak province’s Nirkh district, about 30 miles (48 km) west of Kabul. Afghan troops assisted in the operation, in which the civilian’s two captors were killed. (AP, AFP, Oct-23)
Comments	IOM provided shelter materials to 21 vulnerable families in Bamyan province the week of July 20.  (IOM, Jul-25)

East Central Region

Location	East Central Region
Coordination	UNHCR
Population
IDP Movement	UN; Government encouraging refugees to return to home provinces to limit burden on Kabul—government land distribution program only in province of origin;
Food	The government and the World Bank signed a US$8 million grant agreement to enhance wheat and cereal production by supporting small scale irrigation at the community level.  The Afghanistan Food Crisis Response project focuses on medium-term investments needed to increase food security.  (World Bank, Sep-11) WFP has begun distributing wheat to some 650,000 beneficiaries affected by high food prices in Kabul and the surrounding areas.  (Reliefweb, Mar-6, 2008) IRC, Action Contra la Faim; WFP
Health	The country remains under the national public health emergency declared on January 8, with 30,000 health workers requested to not take leave for the duration of the emergency period. (IRIN, Feb-14) UNICEF, CARITAS, MSF, IFRC, IRC, ICRC
Non-Food Items - Shelter	UNHCR, ACTED, MSF, IRC, ICRC, IOM
Security	Insurgents gunned down a female British aid worker, Gayle Williams, in Kabul on Monday (October 20). Williams, who was working for the Christian aid agency Serving Emergency Relief and Vocational Enterprises (SERVE), was killed by Taliban militants on a motorcycle as she was walking to work. The Taliban accused her of spreading Christianity, but SERVE denied the charge. (BBC, IHT, Reuters, Oct-20)
Water & Sanitation	An agreement has been signed between the UNHCR and the Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development (MRRD) to provide safe drinking water for Afghan returnees from Pakistan and Iran, as well as IDPs.  (UNHCR, Sep. 24) ICRC
Comments	US Task Force Gladiator, Afghan National Police and a contracted supply company delivered 75 desks, 10 chalk boards and 150 sets of school supplies to Jurghati, Hasanzi and Shawo Katay villages in Kohi Sofi district of Parwan province on August 26. (GoUS, Sep-5) On Wednesday (July 9), Afghanistan and UNAMA launched a joint appeal for US$404 million to ensure food security for 450,000 households, give livestock and agricultural assistance to 300,000 farming families and protect about 550,000 women and children from malnutrition. The appeal is designed to cover these and other projects through July 2009 and follows a US$77 million joint food appeal that was fully met earlier this year. (IRIN, Jul-9)

Eastern Region

Location	Eastern Region
Coordination	UNHCR, International Islamic Relief Organization;
Population
IDP Movement	UNHCR
Food	IRC NATO-led ISAF PRT transported water pipes for a nearly seven-mile-long planned water supply project in Baghlan province.  (NATO, Aug-23)
Health	Provincial officials in Khost, Nangarhar and southern Kandahar provinces confirmed hundreds of diarrhea cases due to water contamination from floods. (IRIN, July-11)
Non-Food Items - Shelter	CWS, UNICEF
Security	On Wednesday (October 22), authorities said nine Afghan policemen were killed overnight in a coalition air strike at a fixed police checkpoint in Khost province. A coalition statement said troops may have “mistakenly” killed some allied troops and US officials said they would meet with Afghan counterparts to discuss the incident. (AP, Reuters, BBC, Oct-22) US coalition forces killed three insurgents and detained four others Thursday (October 23) in Paktika province during a raid targeting an insurgent leader accused of helping foreign fighters move through eastern Afghanistan. (AP, Oct-24)
Water & Sanitation	CARITAS; ICRC, UNICEF
Comments

Northeastern Region

Location	Northeastern Region
Coordination
Population	9,000 active IDPs in North and Northeast
Movement IDPs
Food
Health	Afghan officials and the medical team assigned to the Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) in Panjshir province coordinated with local leaders in two districts to augment health care to 563 people. (GoUSA, Oct. 23) WHO, Merlin, UNICEF, MSF; ICRC
Non-Food Items (NFIs) -Shelter	UNICEF, ACTED, Refugees Int’l, Mercy Corps
Security
Water & Sanitation
Comments	The Mine Detection Center (MDC), an Afghan NGO, has cleared 1 million square meters of landmines in Afghanistan’s northeastern region since January. According to UNAMA, 165 people have been killed and more than 1100 people have been injured in mine accidents in the four northeastern provinces of Kunduz, Baghlan, Takhar and Badakhshan. (UNAMA, Oct-21) The MoPH has asked the NATO-led Provincial Reconstruction Team in Badakhshan for air support to enable medical teams to service otherwise inaccessible areas. (IRIN, Feb-14)

Northern Region

Location	Northern Region
Coordination	UNHCR, IOM
Population	9,000 active IDPs in North and Northeast; 60,000 IDPs from North elsewhere in country.
Movement IDPs	IOM
Food	A severe drought has been reported across northern Afghanistan, with the situation being worst in Faryab, Jowjan, Samangan, Saribul and Badghis provinces. Higher-than-normal summer temperatures and a lack of crucial rainfall have left northern rivers at record low water levels, hindering agricultural production and potable water sources. With the added issue of rising global food prices, farming families are unable to purchase basic food items. The governor of Faryab says the province is on the verge of a humanitarian crisis without immediate food aid. Badghis officials say almost all livestock and crops have been lost and more than 200 families are fleeing each day. There are no accurate figures for casualties or losses. Part of a US$404 million joint UN-Afghan appeal announced on July 9 will be used to feed drought-affected populations. (Institute for War and Peace Reporting, Jul-10)
Health	MSF, ICRC, UNICEF At least 20 children have died in several districts of northern Balkh and central Daikundi provinces over the past five weeks due to water contamination from floods. (IRIN, July-12)
NFIs –Shelter	IOM, ACTED, Mercy Corps
Security	In Faryab province, unidentified gunmen killed four people, including a district police chief, Monday (October 20) in an ambush on a police vehicle in Gorziwan district. (Reuters, Oct-20) A suicide bomber struck a convoy of NATO troops Monday in Charsada district in Kunduz province, killing two soldiers and five children. A government spokesperson said the soldiers who died were German, but ISAF declined to give their nationalities. (BBC, IHT, Reuters, Oct-20)
Water & Sanitation	UNICEF, ICRC, DACAAR
Comments	The European Commission’s Humanitarian aid Office and the NGO ActionAid launched a cash for work program in northern Afghanistan on Wednesday (October 22) aimed at providing about 5,000 families with enough food to cover half of their daily requirements through the winter. The program is active in 40 villages in Jawzjan Province’s Darzab and Qushtepa districts, and in Balkh province’s Dawlatabad and Kaldar districts. (ActionAid, Oct-22)

Southern Region

Location	Southern Region
Coordination	UNHCR
Population
Movement of IDPs	Intense military operations against Afghan insurgents in southern Helmand province, especially in Musa Qala district, have caused hundreds of families to flee their homes to neighboring districts and the provincial capital, Lashkargah. (IRIN, Dec-6)
Food	UNICEF; Mercy Corps; CARITAS; WFP
Health	A UNICEF-led Polio vaccination campaign was suspended in Musa Qala due to military operations.  The campaign was also suspended in parts of five other districts. (ReliefWeb, Dec-20)
NFIs - Shelter	UNHCR, Mercy Corps
Security	Taliban militants killed at least 26 passengers on a bus the rebels hijacked in Helmand province’s Maiwand district last week. A purported Taliban spokesperson said the seized bus was carrying Afghan National Army troops, but the government said the passengers were civilians on their way to find work in Iran. (Reuters, AP, Oct-19-20-24) Three militants were killed across Helmand in two separate operations on Saturday (October 18) and Sunday (October 19). (Reuters, AP, Oct-19-20) Afghan and international forces killed 34 militants in a security operation south of Helmand’s provincial capital, Lashkar Gah, on Sunday evening. (IHT, Reuters, Oct-20) A US-led air strike reportedly killed a senior Taliban commander, Mullah Ghafar, in Helmand on Monday. (CNN, Oct-22) At least 35 Taliban militants and three Afghan policemen were killed in an overnight clash that began Tuesday (October 21) in Uruzgan (Oruzgan) province, Afghan forces said Wednesday (October 22). On Thursday (October 23), the US military said 55 insurgents were killed in the attack. (The News, AP, DPA, Oct-22-23) In Uruzgan, coalition forces killed three militants in Khas Uruzgan district Tuesday after the rebels attacked a joint Afghan-coalition patrol. (DPA, Oct-23) A Coalition airstrike and Afghan troops killed 15 Taliban militants, including a commander, in Uruzgan on Wednesday (October 22). (The News, Oct-24) In Kandahar city on Thursday, insurgents detonated explosives attached to a donkey, killing a policeman and wounding two other policemen and a civilian. (DPA, Oct-23) NATO said coalition forces this week killed a civilian in Helmand when he failed to heed warnings to stop as he approached a convoy. (DPA, Oct-23)
Water & Sanitation	UNICEF
Comments	As part of the first governor-led counter-narcotics plan in Afghanistan to replace poppy crops with wheat, Helmand launched a US$9.7 million (6 million pound) program October 14 to strengthen wheat farming. The program will distribute wheat seeds and fertilizer to 32,000 farmers in Helmand, enough to grow about 64,250 acres (26,000 hectares) of wheat. To receive the free wheat, farmers must sign a commitment to not grow poppy. (DFID, Oct-14) The US and the UN agree that Afghanistan will harvest fewer poppy plants this year after two years of record crops. However, according to the AP, the Bush administration claims that production will plunge by 31 percent, from 8,000 metric tons in 2007 to 5,500 metric tons this year, more than five times the drop in production predicted by the UN in August.  The UN said then that despite a 19 percent drop in cultivation, opium production would go down only 6 percent because of a rise in yield.  The US report estimates poppy cultivation is down a similar amount, 22 percent, but says yields have also fallen. (AP, Oct-24) India's Ambassador Jayant Prasad said that India has completed construction of a strategic road linking Afghanistan with a port in Iran.  The 135-mile (220-km) road in southwestern Nimroz is part of India's US$1.1 billion reconstruction effort in Afghanistan. (Reuters, Sep-12). Afghan security forces and ISAF delivered a new turbine to the hydro-power project at Kajaki Dam in Helmand province on Tuesday (Sep-2). It is the second of three turbines designed to refurbish the power plant, which should supply power for some 2 million people in Helmand and Kandahar. (NATO, AP, Sep-2-3) The Afghan government has approved 19 reconstruction projects valued at US$1.4 million (72 million AFA) for Kandahar province.  Projects are to be completed within nine months and are expected to benefit some 29,000 households in the region. (ReliefWeb, Mar-14).

Southern Region IDP camps

Location	Zhare Dasht - South of Kandahar – 6 camps
Type	IDP Camp
Coordination	UNHCR
Camp Capacity	30,000; expandable to 60,000
Population	125,000 IDPs in south; 48,500 at Zhare Dasht
Movement IDP
Food	WFP
Health	UNICEF, MSF
NFIs – Shelter
Security
Water & Sanitation	UNICEF
Comments	Support for Spin Boldak camps terminated in 2004.

Western Region

Location	Western Region
Coordination	UNHCR; ICMC
Population	According to the IFRC, flash floods and avalanches in early March affected some 200 families in Herat city; 918 families in Gulran district; 35 families in Cheshte Sharif district; 150 families in Shindand district, 6,500 families in Badghis/Jawand and Murghab districts, and 20 families in Gour district. (IFRC, Mar-23)  12,000 IDPs, mostly in Maslakh camp
Movement IDPs	IOM
Food	IRC, CARITAS, UNICEF, World Vision, IOM, Action Contre la Faim; WFP Provincial officials are seeking 1,733 tons of food aid to feed some 100,000 most vulnerable people affected by rising food prices in Ghor province. (IRIN, May-19)
Health	At least three people were killed in an outbreak of highly contagious Viral Hemorrhagic Fever in Herat city that was first reported on August 25, according to the Ministry of Public Health. Officials confirmed 10 suspected cases as of August 27 and said most of the infected were butchers, shepherds or others involved with animals. The patients were put in quarantine. (IRIN, Aug-27)
Non-Food Items (NFIs) – Shelter	Islamic Development Bank (IDB) distributed some 12,500 blankets and 150 tents to some 2,500 families in Herat.  (FP, Apr-22)
Security	On Wednesday (October 22), coalition forces in Farah province killed three militants in Bala Bulok district after the insurgents attacked a coalition helicopter with small-arms fire. (DPA, Oct-23) Three US-led coalition soldiers were killed by a roadside bomb in western Afghanistan late Wednesday. A US military statement did not give the soldiers’ nationalities or the location of the attack, but the governor of Farah province said such an attacked had occurred there Wednesday night. (DPA, Reuters, IHT, Oct-23) The Afghan Defense Ministry said Thursday that Afghan army commandos and US Special Forces backed by air support clashed with insurgents in Badghis province’s Ghormach district. Seven militants were killed and six were wounded. (DPA, Oct-23) NATO-led forces said they killed four insurgents who were trying to plant a roadside bomb in Farah province this week. (DPA, Oct-23)
Water & Sanitation	UNICEF
Comments	The International Organization for Migration (IOM) inaugurated an upgraded Radio Television Afghanistan (RTA) radio station and a media center in Qal-i-Naw district in the province of Badghis. IOM installed an AM transmitter and studio, with funding from the Spanish government. The new equipment has allowed the station to broadcast to every district in the province. (IOM, Oct. 24)

Refugee Camps in Pakistan

Location	Long-term camps in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), NWFP, Baluchistan Province, and by capital, Islamabad; Mohamed Kheil 1 & 2 camps (85 km southwest of Quetta)
Type	Refugee Camps
Coordination	Afghanistan, Pakistan and UNHCR on August 2 extended the tripartite agreement governing the voluntary repatriation of registered Afghans from Pakistan through December 2009. The agreement provides a legal and operational framework for the process. To date, more than 3 million Afghans have returned from Pakistan under the voluntary repatriation program since 2002. This year, more than 300,000 Afghans have returned. (UNHCR, GOP, Aug-2) The Kacha Garhi Afghan refugee camp was officially closed on July 26, 2007.  Kacha Garhi, set up in 1980 and located in Hayatabad in NWFP, had 64,000 registered Afghans.  The closure followed two years of negotiations, as many refugees initially did not want to repatriate.  By the camp's closure, some 37,000 refugees had been repatriated by the UNHCR.  Most refugees were originally from Afghanistan's eastern and central provinces of Nangarhar, Laghman, Kabul, and Logar. (UNHCR, July-27)
Camp Capacity	About one million mostly long term Afghans in 74 camps—down from about 200 camps.
Population	2.05 million registered Afghans remaining in Pakistan; 63 camps in NWFP, 12 in Baluchistan; and one million elsewhere; Many occupants are long-term residents or were born in Pakistan; (UNHCR, Aug-2) Jungle Pir Alizai (Balochistan): 36,000, originally scheduled to close June 15. Kacha Gari (NWFP): original population of 64,811, officially closed July 26 – 37,000 repatriated. (UNHCR, July-27) Jalozai (NWFP): 109,934, originally scheduled to close August 31.  UNHCR on August 22 requested Pakistan to temporarily suspend the camp’s closure due to insufficient time for some 100,000 people to move and settle into new places in the face of the fast approaching Ramadan and winter season. (UNHCR, Aug-22)  The deadline was extended to April 15 due to the impending winter. According to IRIN, at least 352 have left Jalozai so far in March.  (IRIN, Mar-20) Girdi Jungle (Balochistan): 17,844, scheduled to close August 31. (IRIN, June-14)
Refugee Movement
Food	WFP, CRS, ARC
Health	UNICEF, MSF
Non-Food Items (NFIs) - Shelter	CRS
Security
Water & Sanitation	IFRC, MDM
Comments