UN Warns Return of 6.5 Million Afghans Puts Significant Pressure on Country
Arafat Jamal, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees representative in Afghanistan, has warned that the return of more than 6.5 million Afghans over the past three years has placed considerable pressure on the country. He called on the international community to continue supporting Afghanistan.
Jamal raised this issue at the eighth International Conference on Action with Women and Peace held in Seoul, the capital of South Korea. He said that returnees face challenges such as poverty, drought, and climate change-related events.
According to him, the number of returnees amounts to about 15 percent of Afghanistan’s population, representing one of the largest population displacements in the world. He added that existing economic and humanitarian problems have made it difficult for Afghanistan to absorb this large number of returnees.
The UN representative also highlighted the difficulties faced by Afghan women, noting that the absence of war does not necessarily mean that all citizens enjoy security.
In a separate interview with the Korea Times during his visit to Seoul, Jamal stated that supporting refugees and vulnerable countries is not merely an act of charity but an investment in a safer and more stable international environment. Referring to Afghanistan’s strategic location and its borders with countries including China, Pakistan, and Iran, he said the country’s stability has broader international significance and that its current relative calm should not be guaranteed without continued global support.
