A major humanitarian crisis is looming in Afghanistan, UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) warned again on Friday, amid ongoing uncertainty about the situation for vulnerable Afghans seeking shelter across the country’s borders.

The “reality is, the displacement crisis is inside Afghanistan”, with more than 600,000 Afghans displaced in 2021, “80 per cent of which are women and children,” according to UNHCR spokesperson Babar Baloch, who was speaking from Pakistan.

In an appeal to the world not to turn away its attention or focus from Afghans and Afghanistan, he warned that the world should not allow this “to become a humanitarian catastrophe”.

Describing the situation at the country’s borders with Pakistan, Mr Baloch said UNHCR had not seen such a “large refugee influx” crossing over into Pakistan and Iran before.

“It could be that some of those people may not think they have the right documents; others may not be so comfortable in terms of confronting armed guards at the borders,” he said.

Mr Baloch said that “Afghans are still able to come through Pakistan, but it is very regulated,” and you must show documents such as your ID card, passport or visa.

His appeal follows the UNHCR’s repeated call on Tuesday for Afghanistan’s neighbouring countries to keep their borders open to those fleeing.

The UN-appointed independent rights experts said Friday that countries must provide urgent protection to Afghan journalists and media workers who fear for their lives and seek safety abroad.

The safety of women is of particular concern as they are facing heightened risks since the Taliban’s political takeover of Afghanistan,” they added, as “they may be targeted for working in the media or simply being a woman in public life”.

Reminding the Human Rights Council of the various resolutions on the safety of journalists adopted in recent years, the experts called for expedited visas, assistance with evacuation, and open borders for those who wished to leave Afghanistan.

Reports of targeted killings of journalists and their family members, home raids, threats and intimidation in areas controlled by the Taliban have sharply increased in recent months.

These are taking place “in a context where Afghanistan is already considered one of the most dangerous countries for journalists,” they pointed out.

They called on the Council to consider setting up “an investigative and monitoring mechanism for accountability for all human rights violations that have been taking place.

The experts included attacks, reprisals and violence against journalists and media workers.

“Accountability for human rights violations is critical not only for individual justice but also the prevention of future violations,” they argued.

Emphasising the crucial prevention role of the Human Rights Council, they called on the Council and all member states to do their utmost to preserve the hard-won gains for media freedom, including for women journalists and media workers.

“Last week’s Council resolution on human rights in Afghanistan fails to address the specific risks faced by journalists and human rights defenders in the country,” they pointed out.

“The safety of journalists, women and men alike, human rights defenders and gender equality activists, must be a key consideration of their engagement on the human rights situation in Afghanistan.

“It is imperative for all States to stand firmly with the people of Afghanistan,” the experts said.

Independent human rights experts are appointed under the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council and are not UN staff, nor are they paid for their work.