The report aims to provide information on the security situation in Afghanistan, which is relevant for international protection status determination (PSD; refugee status and subsidiary protection).
This report is an update of the EASO COI report Afghanistan Security Situation first published in January 2015, and updated in January 2016 and in November 2016.
This report is the third security situation update and presents information until 31 August 2017. A number of specialised paper-based and electronic sources were consulted. The authors of the report additionally interviewed contact persons.
This report provides information on elements and indicators that may help in assessing the need for protection. It is not meant to be read as a whole. In the first part a general description is given on the security situation in Afghanistan and regional differences are highlighted. These are then explained in greater detail in the second part, holding a regional description of geographic subdivisions (Kabul City and 34 provinces).
This report was co-drafted by the following national asylum and migration departments:
- Belgium, Office of the Commissioner General for Refugees and Stateless Persons, Cedoca (Center for Documentation and Research)
- France, Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless persons (OFPRA), Information, Documentation and Research Division
- Poland, Country of Origin Information Unit, Department for Refugee Procedures, Office for Foreigners
- ACCORD – Austrian Centre for Country of Origin and Asylum Research and Documentation
- Slovakia, Migration Office, Department of Documentation and Foreign Cooperation
- Finland, Finnish Immigration Service, Country Information Service
Furthermore, the following cooperated in reviewing and commenting on the report:
- Austria, Federal Office for Immigration and Asylum, Country of Origin Information Department
- The Netherlands, Immigration and Naturalisation Service, Office for Country Information and Language Analysis (OCILA)
- UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), RSD Section
The drafting of this report was finalised in October 2017.
This report was written according to the EASO COI Report Methodology.
Policy
The general security situation in Afghanistan is largely determined by a long-term, ongoing, internal armed conflict which has resulted in many Afghans being uprooted or seeking refuge in another country. In order to assess the need for international protection, the Commissioner General takes into account the fact that there are fundamental differences between the regions of Afghanistan when it comes to the security situation, the nature and intensity of the violence.