UNHCR claims Taliban takeover may force 500,000 Afghans to leave in next 4 months

Kabul: The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has estimated that some 500,000 Afghans are likely to leave the war-torn country in the next four months in the wake of the Taliban takeover.

In a statement issued on Saturday, UNHCR said that the political uncertainty following the collapse of the former government to the Taliban in mid-August will force people to start a mass migration. The latest developments were reported by Tolo News.

Kelly T. Clements, deputy high commissioner said, "While we have not seen large outflows of Afghans at this point, the situation inside Afghanistan has evolved more rapidly than anyone expected."

The UNHCR has even requested the neighbouring countries to keep their borders open to Afghan refugees.

Various international organisations are coming forward to help Afghanis overcome the crisis. The World Food Programme (WFP) has asked the UN to provide the organization with $12 million to provide food for the war-struck people of Afghanistan.

The extremely volatile political situation of Afghanistan coupled with high unemployment rates and security issues are forcing many to leave the country. Habibullah's family is one of the thousands of families waiting outside Kabul airport hoping to find a way out of the country.

"I worked for four years with the foreigners, but now I am jobless. I heard rumours that the Taliban are searching houses for people who worked with foreigners and killing them. I have to leave the country," Habibuallah told TOLO News.

"Unemployment and security threats have forced us to leave the country to save our lives," said Ezatullah, Habibullah's son.

Meanwhile, a number of Afghan women say that they are facing an uncertain future under the Taliban. They say they have studied and worked hard but do not know what is going to happen to them.

"We accepted challenges and studied in Afghanistan. Now we do not know what will happen to us. I am worried about the future of girls in the country," said Rahila, a Kabul resident.

Though the Taliban has vowed to respect women's rights, many Afghans remain sceptical and claim that their words cannot be taken for granted considering their track record.