RASC News Agency: The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has announced that in the past month alone, protective services were extended to 95,024 Afghanistani nationals who returned from Iran and Pakistan. Among this group, 45,301 women and girls benefited from these critical services, underscoring the program’s attention to the unique needs of vulnerable populations.
The UNHCR detailed that these services encompassed psychological support, community engagement initiatives, child protection measures, women’s safety protocols, thorough protection monitoring, family needs assessments, voluntary repatriation support, ongoing returnee monitoring, specialized aid for individuals with special needs, and structured complaint and feedback systems. As of now, UNHCR reports that a total of 578,988 Afghanistani returnees from various countries have accessed these protective services since the Taliban’s return to power. However, many recent returnees from Iran and Pakistan are now facing significant hardships as winter approaches.
These individuals cite urgent challenges, including a lack of adequate shelter, food insecurity, extreme poverty, limited healthcare access, and widespread unemployment. The returnees face additional obstacles due to the Taliban’s restrictive policies, which have constricted job opportunities to those with direct affiliations to the group or members of specific ethnic and linguistic backgrounds. This exclusivity has left many without the possibility of meaningful work, reinforcing a climate of economic and social marginalization for those without Taliban connections.
