Situation in Jalozai now at crisis point

The situation for thousands of newly displaced Afghan arrivals at the Jalozai transit camp, 35 km south-west of Peshawar is now "critical" and demands immediate assistance, UNHCR told IRIN on Monday. "With about 25,000 new arrivals as of today, we are now at crisis point and back to square one," UNHCR spokesman Yusuf Hassan said. "All humanitarian agencies working here are faced with a funding problem and this latest influx has stretched their resources to the limit." Just one week ago, the Jalozai transit camp was the scene of a major UNHCR relocation operation in which nearly 20,000 Afghan refugees were transferred from Jalozai to the Shamshatoo camp area, 40 km from Peshawar, where assistance for the newly displaced was available. Given this latest influx, however, the situation is now worse with no end in sight Hassan said. "At least before we had some resources to assist these people, but now we have nothing.....in addition, the Shamshatoo camps are now full to capacity with some 50,000 people." Hassan added that they are now working with Pakistani authorities for permission to use an alternative site. According to UNHCR, since September some 90,000 Afghans have crossed into Pakistan's North West Frontier Province and Baluchistan seeking assistance after intensified fighting in the north-eastern part of the country, as well as the worst drought to hit the country in 30 years. An additional 40,000 are said to have gone directly to major urban centres to join relatives and friends.