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| November 17, 2001 | Saturday | Ramazan 1, 1422 |
Pakistan warned of fighters sneaking in
ISLAMABAD, Nov 16: The UNHCR has conveyed its concerns to Pakistan about possible crossing into its territory of fighters from Afghanistan, UN officials said at a news conference here on Friday.
Answering a question, UNHCR spokesperson, Yousaf Hasan, said the refugee agency was concerned that the fighting forces might take shelter in refugee camps.
He said the UNHCR had expressed its concerns to the authorities after receiving reports of fighters sneaking into Pakistan.
The UNHCR said that refugee camps must remain humanitarian only. The governments of the states hosting the refugees have the responsibility to ensure the separation of any possible combatants from refugee population and guarantee the non- military nature of the camps, it said.
Earlier this week, the UNHCR reported presence of Taliban troops in some relief camps inside Afghanistan.
Expressing concern about a possible new influx of refugees into Pakistan, the spokesperson said that thousands of people leaving the southern provinces of Kandahar and Helmand were heading for the Pakistani border.
He said several thousand people had already crossed into various points along the border. “Around 1,368 new Afghan refugees have arrived near Dalbandin,” the spokesperson said, adding, more families “have settled in the no man’s land between Pakistan and Afghanistan.”
About shifting of refugees from Killi Faizo, Mr Hassan said a record number of 1,340 refugees were transferred to Roghani camp, some 16km inside the border.
In the coming days, he said, 2,900 refugees at the Killi Faizo would be shifted to Roghani camp.
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