Snowfall and rain over the past 24 hours have affected a number of areas in Afghanistan, with snow disrupting flights to and from Kabul Airport snow falling. More snow and lower temperatures are expected in the coming days snow falling .
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has warned that the harsh winter exacerbates the harsh conditions already facing many Afghans snow falling.
At the daily press briefing from the permanent headquarters in New York, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said that at the same time, humanitarian partners are racing against time to provide aid and supplies, in line with the commitment to expand operations snow falling.
“During December, our humanitarian partners reached seven million people with food relief supplies across the country snow falling.”
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) notes that winter preparations, including cash and non-food assistance, are being supported in different parts of the country.
Donors provided $1.5 billion for the Afghanistan Humanitarian Appeal in 2021 snow falling. This includes $776 million of the $606 million requested for the Secretary-General’s flash appeal snow falling launched in September and $730 million of the $869 million requested for the Humanitarian Response Plan snow falling.
With UNHCR support, Pakistan issues smart ID cards to Afghan refugees snow falling
At the regular press conference from Geneva, UNHCR spokesman Babar Baloch said this was the first large-scale verification of refugees in Pakistan in the past ten years snow falling.
The campaign was launched – after a brief trial period – with UNHCR support on 15 April 2021 and ended on 31 December 2021 snow falling.
As a result of the campaign, officially known as DRIVE, 1.25 million Afghan refugees have been updated and expanded, including 200,000 children under the age of five whose parents have registered as refugees snow falling.
More than 700,000 new smart ID cards have been issued to date. The remaining cards will be printed and distributed in early 2022 snow falling.
The cards, which will be valid until June 30, 2023, contain biometric data and are technically compatible with the systems used in Pakistan to authenticate the identities of citizens snow falling.
According to the UNHCR spokesperson, the new smart ID cards are an essential protection tool for Afghan refugees and give them faster and safer access to health, education, and banking facilities snow falling.
The campaign also provides an opportunity for Afghan refugees to report any specific protection needs or vulnerabilities. More detailed information on socio-economic data will allow refugees to provide better-tailored assistance in Pakistan, and support should refugees decide to return home when conditions permit snow falling.
UNHCR praised Pakistan, noting that more than 40 verification sites have been operated across the country, while mobile registration trucks have facilitated the verification of Afghan refugees living in remote areas. A public information campaign was also carried out to explain the purpose of the campaign and how to participate snow falling.
Strict measures have been taken at all locations to mitigate the risk of COVID-19 by promoting hygiene, maintaining physical distancing, and scheduling a specific number of appointments each day during the operation snow falling.
Baloch stressed that this campaign is part of a broader effort to protect Afghan refugees, including through the support platform for the Afghan Refugee Solutions Strategy launched in 2019 to help refugee-hosting countries while also seeking to invest in the return of refugees to their former areas in Afghanistan snow falling.
Snowfall exposes the gravity of the humanitarian crisis for asylum seekers in Bosnia
Geneva – The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor expressed its deep concern about the harsh conditions of thousands of asylum seekers and migrants in northwestern Bosnia and Herzegovina after the first snowfall covered their fragile tents snow falling, warning of the danger of extreme cold to their lives as their tents lack the minimum heating or equipment necessary to face the difficult winter conditions snow falling.
The first heavy snowfall should serve as a concrete warning of an impending humanitarian crisis, as the government of Bosnia and Herzegovina must urgently provide indoor snow falling, safe, and warm accommodation for thousands of migrants trapped in the canton of Una-Sana.
Michela Polizi, Euro-Med Migration Legal Researcher snow falling
The Geneva-based International Human Rights Monitor said in a press release today that the main reason for the ongoing tragedy experienced by migrants and asylum seekers there is overcrowding in official migrant centers snow falling, in addition to the violent attacks they are subjected to on Croatia’s borders snow falling, which stand in the way of their way to find a safe asylum center with suitable living conditions snow falling.
The Euro-Med Monitor pointed out that the snowfall since last Wednesday in Bosnia and Herzegovina has exacerbated the difficult conditions of about 3,000 migrants and asylum seekers, as bad weather conditions forced them to sleep in harsh conditions inside more than 250 dilapidated camps in the canton of “Una-Sana” in the north of the country snow falling. In a campaign described as an “urgent operation to save lives”, the International Organization for Migration snow falling
(IOM) began distributing sleeping bags, blankets, shoes, and sanitizing items, as well as food and winter clothes to migrants and asylum seekers in camps snow falling, but these efforts are not enough to ensure the safety of migrants and asylum seekers as long as the Bosnian government and the European Union do not intervene snow falling.
Euro-Med Monitor indicated that asylum seekers and migrants in Bosnia and Herzegovina find great difficulties in finding shelter in official reception centers due to the high overcrowding in those centers snow falling , such as in the “Lipa” center, in addition to the closure of the local authorities for housing in those centers, such as the “Beera” center in the city of “Bihac”, which was equipped to accommodate about 1,500 beds for migrants and asylum seekers snow falling.
He pointed out that the extreme cold is not the only obstacle for migrants and asylum seekers, but snowfall is another obstacle snow falling, as the authorities are working to track their footprints on the snow and chase them, while the canton of “Una-Sana” is witnessing a rise in the movement of arrivals, as the last hope to enter Croatia and the European Union.
According to Euro-Med Monitor documentation snow falling, Croatian police have been using violent methods for three years to suppress and deter asylum seekers and migrants with the aim of removing them from the borders of the European Union and returning them to Bosnia and Serbia. In September snow falling, Amnesty International filed a complaint against the European Commission for failing to address allegations of serious violations committed by the Croatian authorities against migrants and asylum-seekers at its borders snow falling.
“The first heavy snowfall should be a concrete warning of an impending humanitarian crisis, as the government of Bosnia and Herzegovina must urgently provide indoor, safe snow falling, and warm accommodation for thousands of migrants trapped in the canton of Una-Sana who are suffering from the bitter cold and below-zero temperatures,” said Euro-Med Monitor Migration Legal Researcher Michela Polizi snow falling.
The Euro-Med Monitor called on the Government of Bosnia and Herzegovina to urgently open additional shelters for migrants and asylum seekers in compliance with international law, in particular Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Article 11 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights snow falling, which stipulates the right of everyone to an adequate standard of living, including adequate housing snow falling.
The Euro-Med Monitor urged the EU to establish an urgent monitoring mechanism in Croatia to ensure that the police deployed at the border respect European law and the fundamental rights of migrants, including securing their access to asylum procedures snow falling.