The United Nations said on Friday it was bracing for a possible exodus from violence-ravaged Afghanistan of up to half a million more refugees by the end of 2021, AFP reported.
As a crisis unfolds in the country, a few thousand Afghans have been recorded as entering Iran daily, while traders continue going back and forth from Afghanistan to Pakistan, said Kelly Clements, deputy UN High Commissioner for Refugees.
“While we have not seen large outflows of Afghans at this point, the situation inside Afghanistan has evolved more rapidly than anyone expected,” Clements told at a news briefing.
“In terms of numbers we are preparing for around 500,000 new refugees in the region. This is a worst-case scenario,” she added.