There are few facilities in the camps around Quetta
Pakistan, which has provided a safe haven for Afghans for more than 25 years, is becoming increasingly reluctant to take any more.
In the area around the town of Quetta, in the south-western province of Baluchistan these camps are dotted along the road leading to the Afghan border.
Just over the border is the Taleban headquarters of Kandahar - a
prime target for any US retribution, and many of its inhabitants have
already left their homes, heading for the camps.
Click here to see a map of refugee camps along the border
On the face of it, the camps seem to hold little attraction.
The khaki walls
of their mud and straw homes blend seamlessly into the landscape.
This is an
area that has had little or no rain for the best part of four years, and
dust hangs thick in the air.
There are few facilities and there is little
work to be had. Yet they are safe, and if Pakistan would let them, tens of
thousands would come, seeking refuge.
But the border is closed. At present there is no fighting and the
authorities are doing all they can to prevent Afghans from entering the
country.
"Pakistan's primary interest is that the needs of the refugees
should be addressed inside Afghanistan", argues Pakistan's Minister of
Refugees, Abbas Khan.
If America launches an all-out assault on Afghanistan, all sides accept that
this policy will not hold.
The task of preparing for the anticipated flood
of refugees in Quetta falls to William Sakataka - the tall Kenyan
representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
He
accepts that up to one million Afghans could pour over the border - although
the exact number would be, as he puts it, "anyone's guess".
At the moment the UNHCR could provide immediate help to up to 100,000
refugees in the Quetta area.
But if the flow of Afghans turns into a flood,
their resources would be severely stretched.
An appeal for international aid
would almost certainly have to be launched, just as US forces were going on
the offensive.
If the current crisis escalates into all out war Pakistan
could, once more, be the site of one of the largest refugee populations in
the world.
Click here to return
Troops have been deployed along the border, in an attempt to keep
them out.
Related to this story:
Afghanistan - a tough military option
(17 Sep 01 | South Asia)
Millions of Afghans face starvation
(21 Sep 01 | South Asia)
Afghan exodus still growing
(20 Sep 01 | South Asia)
Afghans' camps without hope
(05 Sep 01 | South Asia)