Over 10,000 displaced in Baghlan

A joint UN and NGO mission has found over 10,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) in Baghlan province in northern Afghanistan, and 15 to 20 more families are arriving each day from Nahrin, Burka and Ishkamish, according to provincial authorities and aid organisations on the ground. The provincial department registering new arrivals said that some 1,500 conflict-displaced families had arrived so far, the Office of the UN Coordinator for Afghanistan stated in a press release on Monday. Most public buildings in Pulikhumri and Baghlan city were crammed with IDPs, single rooms housing eight to 10 families and men having to sleep outside at night, it added.

The mission had identified a need for increased health and sanitation facilities, immunisation services and drinking water, the Office of the Coordinator stated. Most families had arrived just with the clothes they were wearing, and very few had proper winter bedding, clothing or kitchen utensils, it said. Over 60,000 people are displaced in Takhar and Badakshan provinces - in addition to those recently assessed in Baghlan - due to fighting between advancing Taliban troops and the opposition Northern Alliance