UN suspends aid to Afghans

The refugees are holed up in the Pamir mountains

By Central Asia correspondent Catherine Davis

The United Nations has suspended assistance to thousands of Afghans stranded on the Tajik-Afghan border because of concerns over how the aid might be used.

The UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) said the organisation could not allow its aid to be, as it put it, manipulated.

According to the UN, the decision was prompted by the presence of armed men among the displaced population.

Most of the Afghans came to the area several months ago, after fleeing fighting in Northern Afghanistan between Taleban and opposition forces.

The UNHCR stressed it was willing to provide aid for those who needed it, but could not do so in a place where it was possibly being used for what it called 'other purposes'.

Desperate conditions

Thousands of Afghans have spent the winter camped on a flood plain along the Tajik-Afghan border.

Conditions there prompted serious concern as aid organisations found food to be in short supply, inadequate sanitation and people sheltering in makeshift huts.

But according to the UN the presence of armed men has meant that assistance is not being directed to the most needy.

Now the UN has stipulated that certain conditions must be met before its relief effort is resumed.

Safety concerns

This includes the separation of the civilian population from the fighters and unrestricted access for humanitarian organisations.

There are concerns for the safety of the civilian population, as well as those distributing aid.

Just to the south is the Taleban front line; to the north is the Tajik border, under armed guard.

Tajikistan has refused to admit the displaced Afghans, saying it, too, has security concerns.