New Delhi, Feb 24 (IANS) Thousands of Ukrainians are already on the move and leaving the country, with tens of thousands more preparing to flee, after the Russian attack ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin, The Guardian reported.
Videos and photos on social media show lines of cars moving out of cities and heading west, as well as an increase of people on foot near the southern and western borders, the report said.
The United Nations refugee agency said on Thursday that the situation was quickly deteriorating after Russia's invasion. It appealed to neighbouring countries to keep their borders open to people seeking a safe haven.
"We have already seen reports of casualties and people starting to flee their homes to seek safety," said Filippo Grandi, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, The Guardian reported.
At the Luzhanka border crossing with Hungary in western Ukraine, hundreds of cars waited in a queue snaking more than 2 kilometres back from the border on Thursday afternoon. People said they had been waiting over six hours in line to cross.
Others had come from other parts of Ukraine and planned to drive on to western Europe. "The people who have money are leaving," said one of the customs officials at the post. He said over 1,500 people had left through the crossing by 4 p.m. on Thursday, as opposed to just a few hundred on a normal day.
While Biden has previously blamed Afghans for the U.S. failure to get out more allies ahead of this month's sudden Taliban takeover, U.S. officials told The Associated Press that American diplomats had formally urged weeks ago that the administration ramp up evacuation efforts.
In a statement on Friday, the U.N. health agency said the new scientific group would provide the WHO with an independent analysis of the work done to date to pinpoint the origins of COVID-19 and to advise the agency on necessary next steps. The experts will also provide guidance on critical issues regarding the potential emergence of other viruses capable of triggering outbreaks, such as MERS and Ebola.
During their first press conference on Tuesday the Taliban pressed the right button-backing women's rights. But their promise of protecting women's rights had an important nuance: Women will enjoy freedoms but within the ambit of "Islamic law" .
A contingent of persons from the Hindu and Sikh communities who are stranded in Afghanistan were provided reassurance of safety by the Taliban, media reports said. Over 300 Hindus and Sikhs are reportedly taking shelter at the Karte Parwan Gurudwara in Kabul.
We need humanitarian supplies. The refugee situation we updated you with last week and the week before has only deteriorated. We have 300,000 internal refugees and 80,000 children who are without shelter and food. Where we were short of supplies, now we are out.
Nikita Ishchenko, a spokesman for the Russian Embassy in Kabul, was quoted as saying by RIA: "Four cars were full of money, they tried to stuff another part of the money into a helicopter, but not all of it fit. And some of the money was left lying on the tarmac."
