PESHAWAR, Sept 7: The United Nations High Commission for Refugees will suspend repatriation of Afghan refugees from Sept 14 for a week owing to forthcoming parliamentary elections in the war-torn country, officials said. A Peshawar-based spokeswoman for the UN agency told Dawn that there would be no repatriation of refugees from Sept 14.

The election in Afghanistan will be held on Sept 18. The Afghan government has decided to set up polling stations on the other side of the border where refugees will cast their vote.

Around 350,000 Afghans have returned to their country since March under the UN voluntary repatriation programme.