Afghanistan emergency
Afghanistan emergency
UNHCR and partners, including local NGOs, are responding to deliver vital humanitarian relief to returning refugees and displaced people inside Afghanistan, and to Afghan refugees and asylum-seekers living in five neighbouring countries.
people in Afghanistan in need of vital humanitarian relief
people internally displaced by conflict in Afghanistan
Afghan refugees and asylum-seekers registered in neighbouring countries
Visit the Afghanistan situation page on Global Focus for more statistics.
“The first time I returned, I was very sad; it was a very green village before with fruit trees and when I came back, everything was destroyed.”
Afghanistan is experiencing a humanitarian crisis and protracted displacement.
Although new conflict-related displacement has reduced in recent years, Afghanistan is grappling with one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises. Nearly half the population needs humanitarian assistance, the health care system is collapsing, increasingly extreme weather is exacerbating poverty and food insecurity, and women and girls have limited access to fundamental human rights, including the right to be educated and to work. A morality law introduced by the de facto authorities in 2024 brought in further restrictions on personal conduct, movements and dress.
Afghans constitute one of the largest refugee populations worldwide, with almost 90 per cent hosted in Iran and Pakistan. Between September 2023 and mid-March 2025, more than 843,000 Afghans returned to their country from Pakistan, most of them after an announcement by the Government of Pakistan that it would deport undocumented foreign nationals living in the country. The abrupt return of hundreds of thousands of Afghans has further compounded the humanitarian crisis and placed an undue burden on already limited resources in vulnerable communities.
What is UNHCR doing to help?
UNHCR is committed to staying and delivering in Afghanistan to protect the most vulnerable and assist Afghans with life-saving protection services, shelter, core relief items, cash assistance, community-based programmes, and psychosocial support.
We also support livelihoods and training programmes in areas with high numbers of returning refugees and internally displaced people, to encourage self-reliance and social cohesion. To support refugees returning from neighbouring countries, UNHCR also provides legal counselling and assistance to help people with civil documentation so they can access vital services including health care, education, cash grants and shelter assistance.
UNHCR provides targeted winter assistance, including blankets, stoves, insulation kits and support for heating, as well as emergency assistance in response to disasters such as the floods that struck large parts of the country in May and July 2024.
More humanitarian aid is urgently needed to protect and assist Afghans forced to flee.
Are you a refugee or asylum-seeker in Afghanistan? Find information about your rights and available services on our HELP site.
Are you looking for data on displacement in Afghanistan? Visit the UNHCR data portal for the latest data and statistics on refugees and other displaced persons.
For information on UNHCR's operational response, budgets and funding, please visit the Afghanistan situation page on Global Focus.
