Over 445,000 Afghans Displaced by Conflicts in 2017
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - More than 445,000 Afghans have been displaced in 2017 by conflicts and prolonged insurgency, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said Wednesday.
"From Jan. 1 to Dec. 31 2017, a total of 445,335 people were displaced due to conflict in Afghanistan," it said in a statement.
The number of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the eastern Afghan region has reached nearly 140,205 with more than 123,538 of them in Nangarhar Province, of which 64,513 were due to the recent October-onward Khogyani displacement, the statement noted, Xinhua news agency reported.
The Khogyani district has been the scene of heavy clashes between Afghan security forces and Daesh (also known as ISIL or ISIS) militants since early October as the Daesh militants tired to take full control of the mountainous district.
More than 1 million Afghans have been displaced due to conflicts since 2001 as worsening security situation and the ongoing insurgency have forced the people to leave their houses for safer places.
Over 2,640 civilians were killed and over 5,370 others injured in conflict-related incidents in first nine months of last year, according to figures of United Nations mission in the country.