August 8, 2008

Overview

US to endorse US$20 billion plan to boost Afghan military

US Defense Secretary Robert Gates has reportedly endorsed an Afghan government proposal to increase the size of the Afghan National Army by 50,000 troops, bringing the size of the overall active-duty force to over 120,000. Gates is likely to seek US$20 billion over the next five years to train and strengthen Afghan security forces and restructure the military command of US and NATO forces in response to the growing Taliban threat.

Scores dead in violence across Afghanistan

Scores of people, including civilians, were killed in insurgency-related violence across Afghanistan this week. In the latest violence, on Friday (August 8), a US-led coalition soldier was killed in western Heart province when a roadside bomb struck a military convoy. Several people, including five civilians, were killed during a US-led coalition security sweep in the central province of Ghazni on Thursday (August 7). According to a coalition spokeswoman, troops had been targeting a Taliban militant suspected of coordinating "foreign fighter operations" when they were threatened by several armed militants as they approached a compound in Giro district. She said coalition forces opened fire, killing several militants and inadvertently killing four women and a child who was with them. Lt. Col. Rumi Nielson-Green said, "The coalition regrets the death of these non combatants," adding, "we are planning to conduct a full and thorough investigation." Afghan and coalition forces also killed four militants in a clash in Nahr Surkh district in southern Helmand province on Thursday. The Taliban claims to have killed four NATO officials and destroyed five trawlers in an ambush on a supply convoy heading for bases in western Farah province on Thursday. Earlier in the week, dozens of people were killed in multiple security incidents across Afghanistan’s south, east and west.

Two abducted French aid workers freed in Afghanistan
French aid organization Action Contre la Faim (ACF), also known as Action Against Hunger, said Saturday (August 2) that two of its workers who were abducted last month (July 18) in central Afghanistan have been released by their captors. Paris-based ACF said the two hostages, both French nationals, are "apparently healthy" and arrangements were being made to fly them back to France as soon as possible. The pair was abducted from their house in Day Kundi (also spelled Daykundi) province at gunpoint. Nisar Ahmad, a top aid for the provincial governor, said the release was the result of several rounds of negotiations between a government delegation and the abductors led by a former jihadi commander known as Sedaqat. According to Ahmad, no ransom was paid for the release of the aid workers. He did not say if Sedaqat has any connection with the Taliban. French officials have not released the identities of the workers. French President Nicolas Sarkozy has expressed his gratitude to the Afghan government and President Hamid Karzai for resolving the hostage crisis swiftly and happily. France has some 1,500 troops in Afghanistan and Sarkozy recently pledged to send about 700 additional troops to the country by the end of this year.

NATO-led forces and aid groups agree on civil-military guidelines in Afghanistan
The UN's Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN) reported that the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan and humanitarian aid organizations, including UN agencies, have agreed to a set of guidelines aimed at improving civil-military interactions and clarifying their distinct roles. The Guidelines for the Interaction and Coordination of Humanitarian Actors and Military Actors in Afghanistan, also known as Civ-Mil Coordination Guidelines, have been prepared and endorsed by the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), more than 100 non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the Afghan government and NATO-led ISAF. Speaking to IRIN, Anja de Beer, the director of the Agency Coordinating Body for Afghan Relief (ACBAR), an umbrella organization of over 100 NGOs, said, "It is an important step forward in improving the coordinating between military actors and humanitarian actors." She added, "We hope the guidelines will in the future avoid misunderstandings, and the neutrality of humanitarian actors is better respected." An ISAF spokesman reportedly said that subordinate commanders are expected to implement the newly agreed guidelines. A spokesman for the US-led Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) said it did not have to approve the guidelines as the OEF forces were not routinely involved in development projects. The agreed guidelines come at a time when operating space for the humanitarian aid organizations is shrinking amid widespread insecurity.

Movement

2008: 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	US-led coalition troops killed several militants and five civilians, including four women and a child, during a security sweep in Giro district in Ghazni province on Thursday (Aug-7). (TOI, Aug-7) Coalition forces killed several insurgents on Tuesday (Aug-5) in Kapisa province. (DW, ReliefWeb, Aug-6) Taliban insurgents ambushed NATO-led soldiers on a road on Tuesday in Wardak province. There were no casualties. (DW, ReliefWeb, Aug-6) Suspected Taliban insurgents killed an Afghan army officer and wounded two others in an ambush in Wardak, the defense ministry reported Monday (Aug-4). (Reuters, BBC, Aug-4) Taliban insurgents killed five people, including a district police chief, and wounded several others in an ambush in Zana Khan district in Ghazni on Sunday (Aug-3). (Reuters, BBC, Aug-4) Two French aid workers from Action Contre la Faim (ACF), also known as Action Against Hunger, who were abducted in Daykundi province on July 18 were freed by their captors on Saturday (Aug-2). (BBC, Xinhua, Aug-3)
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	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	Afghan authorities claim to have killed a Taliban leader connected with kidnappings in Logar province on Friday (Aug-1). (Reuters, Aug-2) Taliban insurgents killed three Afghan police officers in an ambush in Logar province on Wednesday (July 30). (Reuters, BBC, Jul-30)
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	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) Malaysia and Australia will soon launch a joint initiative to train 30 “master teachers” who will train Afghan teachers in modern education methods. (GoAustralia, Jul-10)

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	Three Taliban insurgents were killed in Paktia province on Friday (Aug-8) when a roadside bomb they were planting exploded prematurely. (Reuters, Alertnet, Aug-2) An explosion in a mosque killed two people, including the Imam, in eastern Paktika province on Monday (Aug-4). (Reuters, BBC, MSNBC, Aug-4)
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	WHO, Merlin, UNICEF, MSF; ICRC
Non-Food Items (NFIs) -Shelter	UNICEF, ACTED, Refugees Int’l, Mercy Corps
Security	NATO and Afghan forces killed four Taliban insurgents and wounded six others in a joint security operation in Nuristan province on Saturday (July 12). The defense ministry said dozens of insurgents were killed and dozens more wounded on Sunday (July 13) in a counter-attack by the Afghan army. (Reuters, Jul-13)
Water & Sanitation
Comments	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	Three German soldiers belonging to the NATO-led forces were injured in a suicide bomb attack in Baghlan province on Wednesday (Aug-6). (DW, ReliefWeb, Aug-6) US-led coalition forces killed several militants and detained one during a security sweep in Tala Wa Barf district in Baghlan on Sunday (Aug-3), (Reuters, Aug-2-4) Afghan security forces detained five Taliban militants during a security sweep on August 1 in Baghlan. (Reuters, Aug-2-4) In Baghlan province, two civilians were wounded in a blast outside a government building in Pul-i-Khumri city on Monday (July 28). (Reuters, AP, BBC, Jul-29) A civilian was killed in a roadside explosion in Takhar on Monday. (Reuters, AP, BBC, Jul-29) On Tuesday (July 29), a suspected Taliban bomb maker and four other people were killed in an accidental explosion at a house in Takhar province. (Reuters, BBC, AP, Jul-29)
Water & Sanitation	UNICEF, ICRC, DACAAR
Comments	ISAF PRT helps flood-affected families in Khamyab and Qarqin districts in Jowzjan province at the request of provincial authorities. (Frontier Post, Aug-12)

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, Mar-23).
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 The Netherlands will provide US$713,000 (470,000 euros) for repair of war-damaged homes for 400 families in Deh Rawood and 150 families in Tirin Kot. (Reliefweb, Feb-28)
Security	Afghan and coalition forces killed four militants in a clash in Nahr Surkh district in Helmand province on Thursday (Aug-7). (ABC, The News, Aug-8) Afghan security forces backed by foreign troops killed 10 Taliban insurgents in a clash in Marja district in Helmand province on Wednesday (Aug-6). (TOI, Aug-7) Taliban insurgents killed seven Afghan policemen in an ambush on a police post in Safian village near Helmand’s provincial capital, Lashkar Gah on Wednesday. (TOI, Aug-7) Afghan security forces killed eight Taliban fighters and wounded seven others in an operation in Zherai district in Kandahar province on Wednesday. (TOI, Aug-7) Afghan and NATO forces killed at least 17 Taliban insurgents in a joint operation in Helmand province that ended on Sunday (Aug-3). (Reuters, MSNBC, Aug-4) At least 10 civilians, including a bride and groom, were killed and six others wounded in Maroof district in Kandahar province when a bus carrying a wedding party hit a landmine on Saturday (Aug-2). (Reuters, BBC, MSNBC, Aug-2-3) In Kandahar’s Panjway district, five Afghan policemen were killed and two others were wounded when their vehicle hit a roadside bomb on Thursday (July 31). (Reuters, Aug-1) In Kandahar’s Arghandab district on Thursday, suspected Taliban insurgents shot dead a tribal chief and his three sons and abducted seven others. (Reuters, Aug-1) In Nimroz province, three Afghan civilians were killed in a suicide bomb attack in Zaranj district on Friday (August 1). (Reuters, Aug-1)
Water & Sanitation	UNICEF
Comments	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 17 people have been reportedly killed in Gulran district in western Herat province by “Charmak” disease after consuming contaminated flour. There have so far been 200 confirmed cases of the disease known as hepatic veno-occlusive disease (VOD), also known as 'camel belly.' (IRIN, Reliefweb, May-15) Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF), with the help of US-led coalition forces, carried out a Medical Civic Action Program (MEDCAP) in Shewan, Farah province on August 30 and treated more than 811 people, including 576 women and children. (USG, Sep-2)
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 Friday (Aug-8), a US-led coalition soldier was killed in Herat province when a roadside bomb struck a military convoy. (The News, Aug-8) Taliban claim to have killed four NATO officials and destroyed five trawlers in an ambush on a supply convoy heading for bases in Farah province on Thursday (Aug-7). (The News, Aug-8) At least six Taliban insurgents were killed in Badghis province on Wednesday when they attacked a convoy carrying supplies for the NATO bases in the province. (TOI, Aug-7) One coalition soldier died Wednesday from wounds he had sustained in a roadside bomb attack in Herat on Monday (Aug-4). (DW, ReliefWeb, Aug-6) Troops from the Afghan National Army killed four Taliban militants on Wednesday in Farah province. (DW, ReliefWeb, Aug-6) US-led coalition forces reportedly killed several suspected Taliban militants in an airstrike in Farah on August 1, while Afghan police arrested three Taliban kidnappers on the same day in Farah. (Reuters, BBC, MSNBC, Aug-2-4) Two people, one Afghan guard and one civilian, were injured in a bomb blast outside the Pakistani consulate in Herat city in Herat province on Thursday (July 31). The bomb was placed on a bicycle and remotely detonated. (BBC, Reuters, Jul-31)
Water & Sanitation	UNICEF
Comments

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