Kabul – Worsening conflict has forced nearly 55,000 Afghans to leave their homes so far in 2017, a UN report revealed on Tuesday.
These are the verified numbers. However, almost 28,000 more individuals may have been displaced due to the fighting between the radical Islamist Taliban movement and security forces, the report adds.
More than 16,000 civilians may have been displaced in the northern Badakhshan province in the past week alone.
Clashes in the southern region may have caused the displacement of thousands in Kandahar, Uruzgan and Helmand and a further 7,000 individuals in embattled Helmand province, according to the report.
UN Spokesman Mohammad Malikzai said that the organisation was trying to verify the figures.
The report says displacement occurred in 25 of the country’s 34 provinces.
In 2016, more than 660,600 civilians fled their villages and homes.
This year, the UN expects to see another 450,000 displaced persons inside the country.