June 15, 2007

Overview

Afghan President Karzai escapes assassination attempt by Taliban

Afghan President Hamid Karzai escaped an assassination attempt by suspected Taliban militants on Sunday (June 10) in southeastern Afghanistan. Karzai was speaking to a large gathering at a school in Andar district in Ghazni province when militants fired several rockets at the school, which all fell short of their intended target. According to some witnesses, they heard between four and six rockets, but the Taliban claimed they had fired 12 rockets. There were no reports of casualties from the attack. Qari Yousef Ahmadi, a spokesman for the Taliban, claimed responsibility for the attack. Karzai finished his speech before a helicopter rushed him back to the capital Kabul. Tom Koenigs, the UN special envoy to Afghanistan, condemned the attack on Karzai saying, "Those who are responsible clearly do not respect the views of the millions of Afghans who elected President Karzai." Meanwhile, Afghan authorities say they have made seven arrests in connection with the assassination attempt.

Suicide bomb attack kills nine civilians in southern Afghanistan

Nine civilians, including six children, were killed in a suicide car bomb attack in southern Afghanistan. The attack was reportedly aimed at a NATO convoy. It took place earlier today (Friday, June 15) in the provincial capital Tirin Kot in southern Uruzgan (also spelled Oruzgan) province. A suicide bomber drove his explosives-laden car near a Dutch armored vehicle and detonated explosives, killing nine civilians and a Dutch soldier. According to provincial authorities, 11 other civilians, including women and children, were also wounded in the incident. Only hours later, a similar attack aimed at a NATO convoy in neighboring Kandahar province wounded five civilians. There were no reports of fatalities from the second attack.  Earlier this week (Tuesday, June 12) two Afghan girls were killed and six others wounded when unidentified gunmen on motorbikes opened fire outside a girls’ school in southeastern Logar province. 

Dozens of Taliban killed in clashes with security forces across Afghanistan

Dozens of suspected Taliban were reportedly killed in separate clashes with Afghan and NATO-led security forces across the country's south and southeast.  US-led coalition forces said they had killed at least 24 Taliban militants in four separate clashes in the southern provinces of Helmand, Kandahar and Zabul overnight.  The Afghan Defense Ministry said on Wednesday (June 13) that at least a dozen Taliban were killed and another four wounded when Afghan troops, with close NATO air support, attacked a Taliban hideout in Dai Chopan (also spelled Deh Chopan) district in southern Zabul province on Tuesday (June 12). The fighting reportedly took place in the Salwan area of the district, where authorities said had a Taliban presence. Separately, ten suspected Taliban fighters were killed in a clash with NATO-led security forces in Gerishk district in southern Helmand province yesterday (Tuesday, June 12). Afghan and US-led coalition forces arrested 10 suspected Taliban insurgents in Andar district in the southeastern province of Ghazni on Tuesday. Also, eight armed militants were arrested in Urgun (also spelled Orgun) district in southeastern Paktika province on Tuesday (June 12).

France to provide more trainers to train Afghan army

France is reportedly preparing to deploy some 150 additional instructors to Afghanistan to train the country's armed forces. Jean-Francois Bureau, a French defense ministry spokesman, told a weekly press briefing in Paris, France yesterday (Thursday, June 15), "We want to do everything to help Afghanistan build up its national army, which will ensure the stability of the country along with other entities, such as the police force." According to French defense officials, the exact timing and assignment of the additional trainers has yet to be decided. Christophe Prazuck, a spokesman for the French military, said French troops will accompany Afghan soldiers on the ground and help prepare for operations but will not be deployed in combat. The announcement comes ahead of a meeting of the NATO defense chiefs this week in the Belgian capital Brussels. Earlier this week (Wednesday June 13), US Defense Secretary Robert Gates had called for more trainers to help train the Afghan army to take over more security responsibilities across the country.

Movement

2007 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

Location	Central Region
Coordination
Population	An avalanche in the Murgab area in central Ghor killed at least 16 people. On Monday (March 19) floods killed 30 people in Uruzgan province.
IDP Movement
Food
Health	Typhoid fever has claimed five lives and infected some 200 others over the past 10 days in the Charsada district of the country's central Ghor province. (Feb. 15, People’s Daily Online)
NFIs -Shelter	IOM, UNICEF, UNOCHA, & OXFAM
Water & Sanitation	UNICEF
Security	New Zealand PRT in Bamiyan In Uruzgan (Oruzgan) province, nine civilians and a Dutch soldier were killed in a suicide car bomb attack on a Dutch NATO convoy in the provincial capital of Tirin Kot on Friday (June 15). 11 other civilians were injured. (June 15, BBC)
Comments

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	ISAF troops carried out a two-day food donation near the village of Gulbagh in Chahar Asiab district,  (Feb. 11, NATO) Florida state guards deliver 2,000 blankets, 1,000 soccer balls and basic school supplies for hundreds of orphaned children in Kabul.  (USG, Nov. 30).  IRC, Action Contra la Faim; WFP;
Health	Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Chinese Ambassador to Afghanistan Liu Jian on Thursday laid the foundation stone for the US$15.69 million China-funded new main Jamhuriat Hospital building in Afghan capital Kabul.  (Xinhua, Nov. 2) UNICEF, CARITAS, MSF, IFRC, IRC, ICRC; Kabul is home to the world’s worst outbreak of leishmaniasis, thought to have spread to hundreds of thousands of people.  The sandflies that spread the parasites causing the disease are present in all Afghan cities, but more prominently in poor, crowded areas where they breed on waste land and in trash. (Reuters, May 7)
Non-Food Items - Shelter	UNHCR, ACTED, MSF, IRC, ICRC, IOM;
Security	In Logar province, two Afghan girls were killed and six others wounded when unidentified gunmen opened fire outside a girls’ school on Tuesday (June 12). (Reuters, June 12)
Water & Sanitation	ICRC;
Comments	Floods triggered by spring rains continue to affect districts in Kunar, Laghman and Nangarhar provinces.  Floods have killed 13 people in Kunar and another eight in Laghman.  Nearly 3,000 people have been affected by the floods in these provinces.  (OCHA, Apr. 5)

Eastern Region

Location	Eastern Region
Coordination	UNHCR, International Islamic Relief Organization;
Population
IDP Movement	UNHCR
Food	IRC;
Health	FAO confirmed cases of the H5N1 type of bird flu in poultry in the eastern city of Jalalabad in Nangarhar province and in Sawki district in Kunar province.  (FAO, Feb. 26) Jalalabad PRT distributed hygiene kits, first-aid kits, tarps, school kits, and student kits to the Char Bagh Girls Middle School in Sirjkh Rod District, in Nangarhar province. (NATO, Feb. 11)
Non-Food Items - Shelter	CWS, UNICEF
Security	In Nangarhar province, US-led forces killed seven Afghan policemen and injured five others in a friendly fire incident at a remote checkpoint in Khogyani district. (BBC, June 12)
Water & Sanitation	CARITAS; ICRC, UNICEF
Comments	UN relief agencies facing logistical problems delivering aid to flood-affected people in Nuristan.  (IRIN, Apr. 9) Nuristan PRT in Kala Gush dedicated the newly completed Nurgram Ministry of Justice building, conducted medical outreach in Dareng village and inspected the ongoing construction of a school in Kowtalay village.  (Feb. 9, NATO)

Northeastern Region

Location	Northeastern Region
Coordination
Population	9,000 active IDPs in North and Northeast
Movement IDPs
Food
Health	WHO, Merlin, UNICEF, MSF; ICRC
Non-Food Items (NFIs) -Shelter	UNICEF, ACTED, Refugees Int’l, Mercy Corps
Security	As many as 10 Afghan policemen were killed and dozens of others wounded in a suicide bomb attack in Kunduz city.  (BBC, AP, April 16) NATO/German PRT in Faizabad
Water & Sanitation
Comments	At least 24 people were killed in flash floods caused by torrential rains in northeastern Badakhshan province on May 15.  (IRIN, May 16)

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
Health	MSF, ICRC, UNICEF;
NFIs –Shelter	IOM, ACTED, Mercy Corps
Security	Zakia Zaki, a female Afghan radio journalist, was shot dead at her house in northern Parwan province on Tuesday (June 5)  (AP, BBC, June 6)
Water & Sanitation	UNICEF, ICRC, DACAAR
Comments

Southern Region

Location	Southern Region
Coordination	UNHCR
Population	IFRC says that flash floods and avalanches in early March have affected 2,200 families in Helmand/Sangreen Grishk, Musa Qala, and Nowzad districts; and 400 families in Uruzgan/Dehraud district. (IFRC, March 23).
Movement of IDPs
Food	ISAF troops delivered some eight tons of food and non-food items and medical supplies to a village near Kandahar.  (NATO, Mar. 28) UNICEF; Mercy Corps; CARITAS; WFP; According to the Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development (MRRD) of some 1,500 families displaced by fighting near Musa Qala, only some 300 had received assistance from UNICEF. The WFP and ARCS.  (UNOCHA, Feb. 21) MRRD, in conjunction with the WFP, plans to distribute 5,820 metric tons of food during 2007 to 50,820 food insecure families (304,920 individuals) under a food-for-work scheme.  (GOA, Feb.22)
Health	ICRC is considering the Afghan government’s request to run a hospital in Helmand province that was formerly run by the Italian NGO, Emergency. (BBC, Wednesday, June 6) Persistent insecurity in southern Afghanistan continues to hamper polio vaccination campaigns in Uruzgan and other provinces in the south.  (UNOCHA, Mar. 15)
NFIs - Shelter	UNHCR, Mercy Corps;
Security	In Ghazni province, Afghan President Hamid Karzai escaped a rocket attack by Taliban militants in Andar district on Sunday (June 10). (AP, June 10) US-led forces arrested 10 suspected Taliban insurgents in Andar district on Tuesday (June 12). (AP, June 13) In Kandahar province, a suicide car bomb attack aimed at a NATO convoy injured five civilians. One NATO soldier was killed and three injured in a separate attack on Friday (June 15). (BBC, June 15) US-led troops fired at a group of militants setting up a rocket in Shah Wali Kot district, killing several militants. (AP, June 15). In Zabul province, at least a dozen Taliban were killed and another four wounded when NATO-led troops attacked a Taliban hideout in Dai Chopan (also spelled Deh Chopan) district on Tuesday. (AP, June 13) On Thursday (June 14), militants attacked a joint coalition and Afghan patrol in Daychopan district. A “few enemy fighters” were killed, according to the military. On Friday, “a few militants” were killed and three others detained when US-led troops raided a compound in Shahjoy district. A civilian was killed and another injured. (AP, June 15) In Helmand province, ten suspected Taliban fighters were killed in a clash with NATO-led security forces in Gerishk district on Tuesday. (AP, June 13) A US-led patrol was attacked by militants near Sangin district on Thursday and troops fired – no casualties have been reported. (AP, June 15). In Paktika province, eight militants were arrested in Urgun (also spelled Orgun) district on Tuesday. (AP, June 13) On Friday, a coalition soldier was killed in a clash in Paktika province – his nationality was not released. (AP, June 15)
Water & Sanitation	UNICEF
Comments	Helmand, Uruzgan, Ghazni and Daikundi provinces continue to be affected by floods.  (OCHA, Apr. 6)

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	An estimated
Food	WFP
Health	UNICEF, MSF;
NFIs - Shelter
Security	Taliban militants released four kidnapped Afghan health workers in Helmand province in exchange for the body of Taliban leader, Mullah Dadullah – one other hostage was beheaded.  (Reuters, Thursday, June 7) At least two policemen were killed in a roadside bomb blast in Kandahar and another policeman was killed in a similar incident in Zabul on Thursday (June 7).  (BBC, June 8) At least 30 Taliban fighters were killed when US-led helicopter gunships sank their boat on the Helmand River on Tuesday (June 5)  (AP, June 5) As many as 60 suspected Taliban fighters were killed on Saturday (June 2) when their makeshift boat sank on the Helmand River.  (AP, BBC, June 4) Suspected Taliban militants stormed into the house of a police commander in Ghazni, killing his wife, two sons and two nephews.  (AP, June 1)
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 have 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, March 23)  12,000 IDPs, mostly in Maslakh camp
Movement IDPs	IOM
Food	WFP has sent 127 tons of food assistance for some 3,515 flood-affected families in Badghis province.  (OCHA, Nov. 23) IRC, CARITAS, UNICEF, World Vision, IOM, Action Contre la Faim; WFP;
Health
Non-Food Items (NFIs) – Shelter	UNHCR sent 50 tents, 1,000 blankets, 500 plastic sheets, 20 jerry cans and 500 lanterns for flood victims in Badghis.  (OCHA, Nov. 23) UNHCR, Iranian Red Crescent, UNICEF, IOM, Ockenden Int’l, MSF, IMC;
Security	On Wednesday (May 30), 10 suspected Taliban insurgents were killed and another 15 wounded in a clash with Afghan security forces in Pusht Road district in western Farah province.  (CNN, AP, May 30) At least 14 suspected Taliban militants were killed in NATO and US-led coalition airstrikes in Bakwa district in western Farah province on Thursday (May 17). (AP, May 18)
Water & Sanitation	UNICEF
Comments	Provinces of Herat, Badghis and Ghor have also been affected by the floods.  (OCHA, Apr. 6)

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	UNHCR UNHCR is ready to help relocate thousands of Afghan refugees from Kacha Gari camp in NWFP and Jungle Pir Alizai refugee camps in Balochistan, which were scheduled to close on June 15 but closure was delayed. (IRIN, June 14)
Camp Capacity	About one million mostly long term Afghans in 74 camps—down from about 200 camps.
Population	Estimated 2.6 million Afghan refugees remain in Pakistan; 63 camps in NWFP, 10 in Baluchistan; and one million elsewhere; Many occupants are long-term residents or were born in Pakistan; Jungle Pir Alizai (Balochistan): 36,000, originally scheduled to close June 15 Kacha Gari (NWFP): 64,811, originally scheduled to close June 15 Jalozai ( NWFP): 109,934, scheduled to close August 31 Girdi Jungle (Balochistan): 17,844, scheduled to close August 31 (IRIN, June 14)
Refugee Movement	Pakistan wants some 2 million Afghan refugees to return home by 2009.  (AP, June 14)
Food	WFP, CRS, ARC
Health	UNICEF, MSF
Non-Food Items (NFIs) - Shelter	CRS
Security	At least three Pakistani villagers and an Afghan refugee were killed when hundreds of villagers and refugees living in and near the Jungle Pir Alizai camp in Balochistan province clashed with police sent to demolish their homes. (AP, June 14)
Water & Sanitation	IFRC, MDM
Comments	The Pakistan government has identified existing camps in Dhir and Chitral in the northern part of the country as relocation sites for Afghans who can not return to Afghanistan following recent camp closures in NWFP and Balochistan.  (UNHCR, Feb. 21) 2,161,984 Afghans were registered between October 2006 and yesterday. Of the total, 1,368,316 were registered in North West Frontier Province; 454,726 in Balochistan; 240,698 in Punjab and Islamabad; 92,189 in Sindh; and 6,055 in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir (PcK). More than 2.87 million Afghans have returned home from Pakistan since 2002, including over 133,000 in 2006. (Feb. 16, Reuters) Pakistan authorities say that a June 15 deadline to close the Jungle Pir Alizai and Katchagari camps in Balochistan province will not be met as residents remain reluctant to leave. Authorities are seeking help from local tribal elders. Two other camps, Jalozi in NWFP and Girdi Jungle in Balochistan, are still scheduled to close on August 15. The camps all host about 230,000 people. (AP, June 14)