Tajikistan Ready To Receive Up To 100,000 Afghan Refugees Amid Rising Violence - Official

(@FahadShabbir)

Tajikistan Ready to Receive Up to 100,000 Afghan Refugees Amid Rising Violence - Official

DUSHANBE (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 23rd July, 2021) Tajikistan is ready to accommodate up to 100,000 refugees from Afghanistan who are fleeing increased violence sparked by the offensive by the Taliban (outlawed in Russia as a terrorist organization), Emomali Ibrahimzade, the deputy head of the Committee of Emergency Situations and Civil Defense, said on Friday.

"Today, it is possible to receive and accommodate about 100,000 refugees from Afghanistan at the military training grounds of the Tajik Ministry of Defense located near the border with Afghanistan," Ibrahimzade told reporters.

The Central Asian country can accommodate even more refugees, if needed, the official said, adding that Tajikistan, along with international organizations, is currently exploring such possibility.

In July, Tajikistan received more than 1,500 refugees from Afghanistan and provided them with all the necessities, including medical care, shelter and food, the official added.

All the refugees have already returned to their homes.

Afghanistan has witnessed a spike in violence as the Taliban stepped up military activities after international troops began withdrawing from the country in May, as part of the US-Taliban agreement signed in Doha in February 2020. Fearing attacks and fleeing clashes, Afghan civilians and military crossed the border into Tajikistan.

On Thursday, Taliban spokesperson Zabiullah Mujahid told Sputnik the radical movement had established 90% control over Afghanistan's border, including with such neighboring countries as Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and Iran.