Afghanistan Times
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AT Monitoring Desk-KABUL: The Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation (MoRR) said that Afghanistan is not ready for mass repatriation of Afghan refugees from Iran.
Spokesman for the MoRR, Islamuddin Jurat, stressed on gradual repatriation of Afghan refugees. He said that a commission, comprised of Afghan and Pakistani officials, has been established to resolve the problems faced by Afghan refugees.
This came at a time that President Ashraf Ghani during his trip to Iran met with Afghan refugees and said that paving the ground for dignified and gradual repatriation of refugees is in the government’s top priorities. The president said that he has discussed the problems faced by Afghan refugees with Iranian officials. “The challenges faced by our refugees in Iran would be resolved soon,” President Ghani added.
In the meantime, officials in the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Kabul said that the government should devise a comprehensive plan for repatriation of refugees.
Nader Farhad, spokesman for the UNHCR in Kabul, stressed that repatriation of refugees from Iran should be dignified and safe. “The government should provide all facilities, including shelter, education, higher education and jobs, for returnees,” he said.
According to reports, around 3 million Afghan refugees are living in neighboring countries, particularly in Iran and Pakistan.
