With the end of evacuation operations from Kabul on Monday, a much larger humanitarian emergency is only just beginning in the Taliban-controlled country, United Nations refugee chief Filippo Grandi warned.
"The scenes at Kabul airport these past few days have sparked an outpouring of compassion around the world at the fear and desperation of thousands of Afghans," Grandi stated.
"But when these images have faded from our screens, there will still be millions who need the international community to act," he underlined.
Although the "praiseworthy" evacuation operations saved tens of thousands of lives since the Taliban took Kabul in mid August, some 39 million Afghans remain inside Afghanistan, Grandi noted.
"They need us – governments, humanitarians, ordinary citizens – to stay with them and stay the course," Grandi said.
Around 3.5 million people have already fled violence within the country – more than half a million since the start of this year while some are still internally displaced and starting to return to their homes following the fighting, he said.
"Most have no regular channels through which to seek safety" he said.
And while millions of Afghans find themselves in dire need of help, there is a severe aid shortfall, Grandi stated.
"All rely on humanitarian programmes that need scaling up, and fast," said.
Afghanistan's borders with neighbouring countries need to be kept open to enable Afghans to seek international protection, Grandi said. He urged more international aid for host countries, which could face a further influx while continuing to host longterm Afghan refugees whose return prospects have diminished amid the crisis in their homeland.
Pakistan and Iran still host around 2.2 million registered Afghan refugees - almost 90% of the total, Grandi recalled.
"More countries must share this humanitarian responsibility, not least given the critical situation faced by the Islamic Republic of Iran as it confronts the challenge of the (Coronavirus) pandemic," he stressed.
Refugees will also need longer-term solutions and more resettlement options are sorely needed, said Grandi, calling for a "robust and urgent" response to the Afghan crisis.
"Standing by the people of Afghanistan means standing by all of them, whether they have sought safety abroad or are picking up the pieces of their lives at home," Grandi argued.
"We must not turn away. A far greater humanitarian crisis is just beginning," he concluded.
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