Afghan nationals held protest in front of UNHCR office in Delhi, demand refugee status
Aug 23, 2021
New Delhi [India], August 24 : Afghan nationals held a protest on Monday in front of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) office in New Delhi, seeking refugee cards and resettlement options in a third country.
Scores of Afghan nationals gathered at the UNHCR office in Vasant Vihar and demanded refugee status/cards for resettlement.
The Taliban declared the end of the two-decade war in Afghanistan last week, when the terror group entered Kabul, completing a weeks-long offensive across the country amid the departure of foreign troops. Since the Taliban took over the country, Afghan nationals are scrambling to get out of the war-ravaged country.
In response to the increasing number of Afghan nationals demanding refugee status, the UNHCR said refugees and asylum-seekers in India who have international protection needs to contact UNHCR or UNHCR's partners.
"Less than 1 per cent of refugees are currently resettled globally, due to the limited number of places. For this reason, only the most vulnerable refugees are able to be prioritized for resettlement," UNHCR added.
The UN agency further said that they are upscaling their support to Afghan refugees and prioritizing very vulnerable individuals.
"We are upscaling our support to Afghan refugees and asylum- seekers, through registration and documentation for assistance, prioritizing very vulnerable individuals," said UNHCR.
Many countries have resorted to evacuating their citizens and diplomatic personnel from Afghanistan due to the precarious security situation, and some have pledged to take in a limited number of Afghan asylum seekers.
