Afghan

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon confers with President Hamid Karzai during conference

Afghanistan: flawed elections could roll back progress, warns Ban

31 March 2009
Too much is at stake for Afghanistan’s upcoming presidential elections to be flawed, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stressed today, calling on the international community to support efforts to consolidate stability in the war-torn nation.
Afghan refugees (file photo)

UN aid for Afghan refugees repatriating from Pakistan set to resume

30 March 2009
Afghan refugees seeking to return to their home country from north-west Pakistan will receive a boost when the United Nations resumes its voluntary repatriation programme this week.
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (right) speaks at the Moscow Special Conference on Afghanistan

Terrorism, drugs and crime thwarting Afghan development, warns Ban

27 March 2009
Terrorism, illicit drug trafficking and organized crime are seriously impeding progress in Afghanistan, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warned today, calling for greater international cooperation to help the country tackle these challenges.

UN report calls for end to arbitrary detention in Afghanistan

26 March 2009
A new United Nations report, revealing that Afghans are often detained without lawful reason, recommends a range of changes to laws and procedures of the criminal justice system in the country.
Kai Eide, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Afghanistan

Priorities in Afghanistan clear, but resources and will needed – UN official

19 March 2009
International priorities in Afghanistan – including security, long-term institution-building and stability throughout the coming elections – remain valid, but what is lacking is adequate resources and political will, the top United Nations envoy to the strife-torn country said today.
Minister Najamuddin Khan (left) and UNHCR's Guenet Guebre-Christos sign agreement on Afghan refugees

UN agreement with Pakistan allows Afghan refugees to extend their stay

13 March 2009
The Pakistani Government today reached an agreement with the United Nations refugee agency allowing some 1.7 million Afghans to continue sheltering in their country until the end of 2012.
A voter's fingure is dipped in a jar of ink, a measure to prevent double voting

Upcoming elections pose crucial test for Afghanistan – UN report

13 March 2009
The Government and people of Afghanistan, as well as their international partners, face a critical test in 2009, as the fledgling democracy prepares to hold credible elections over the coming months, according to a United Nations report released today.
Special Representative Kai Eide

Top UN envoy to Afghanistan visits Iran to boost ties

9 March 2009
The top United Nations envoy to Afghanistan is in Iran today to explore further areas of cooperation between the neighbouring nations.
Young shepherds in northern Afghanistan

New UN report highlights worsening human rights situation in Afghanistan

5 March 2009
The human rights situation in Afghanistan is marked by a “disturbing” rise in civilian casualties, setbacks for women, mounting attacks on freedom of expression and a culture of impunity when it comes to punishing perpetrators of abuses, the United Nations says in a new report.
Kai Eide, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Afghanistan

Top UN envoy to Afghanistan welcomes August election date

4 March 2009
The top United Nations envoy to Afghanistan today welcomed the decision by the country’s Independent Election Commission (IEC) reaffirming 20 August as the date of the 2009 presidential and provincial council elections, stressing that this will allow time for the necessary preparations for the polls.