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https://www.britannica.com/topic/mujahideen-Afghani-rebels
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-south-asia-11451718
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Taliban
https://www.unrefugees.org/news/afghanistan-refugee-crisis-explained/#Why%20have%20people%20from%20Afghanistan%20been%20forced%20to%20flee
https://www.unrefugees.org/emergencies/afghanistan/#:~:text=refugee%20settlement%20in%20Pakistan.,registered%20Afghan%20refugees%20in%20total
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/aug/27/everyone-is-afraid-afghans-fleeing-taliban-push-for-exit-into-pakistan
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2019.00185/full
https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/1674/
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2023/mar/02/pakistan-crackdown-on-afghan-refugees-leaves-four-dead-and-thousands-in-cells#:~:text=Since%20the%20Taliban%20seized%20power,migrants%20back%20across%20the%20border
https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/11/22/afghanistan-refugees-pakistan-taliban-border/
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/aug/27/everyone-is-afraid-afghans-fleeing-taliban-push-for-exit-into-pakistan

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Settlement Activity
- Pakistan has implemented a program to send Afghan immigrants back to Afghanistan through tactics such as deportation and arrests, which means that even though some refugees have escaped Afghanistan, they are still targeted in Pakistan; some Afghans, regardless of their legal status, have been targeted by the Pakistani Taliban. Even Afghan people that have a visa in Pakistan suffer abuse from the police. This is mainly a physical settlement activity because the Afghan refugees are suffering physically in this new country from hunger, physical violence, and discrimination.
- Afghan refugees in Islamabad live in poverty, and are forced to make shelter in makeshift tents. They receive very little support from the Pakistani government.

Environmental Impact
- As a developing country, the influx of refugees in Pakistan has also caused “overexploitation of natural resources, land erosion, deforestation, hunting and foraging.” https://pjia.com.pk/index.php/pjia/article/view/226#:~:text=Furthermore%2C%20refugee%20influxes%20created%20environmental,is%20leading%20society%20towards%20conflict.
Having an overpopulation of people could affect the overall environmental condition of Pakistan and could make the situation more dangerous and harmful overall.

Cultural Impact
- Even though Afghanistan and Pakistan are similar in cultures and religions with a predominantly Muslim population, their differences are making it so that Afghan refugees are still being targeted. They are treated differently and suffer from unemployment, poverty, and food shortages due to the rising tension between the neighboring countries. This is a social impact because Afghan refugees are suffering the social consequences of being refugees living in Pakistan.

- Pakistan also has a struggling economy and the influx of refugees has caused disputes among land and water supply; Pakistan’s security and political stability are also affected by the Afghan Mujahidin, who are pursuing fleeing Afghan refugees in Pakistan. This is a political and economic impact.
- Over half of the Pakistani population live in rural areas, and Afghan refugees are also residing in these unsanitary and rural areas because they suffer from poverty, making them vulnerable to disease and sickness in their communities. More refugees are fleeing to these places, creating more stress on the safety and health of the communities. This is an economic impact because the wealth in Pakistan is not well distributed and many citizens live in poverty. The refugees are also extremely poor and both factors can cause a number of problems in safety and health.

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Choice
- Many refugees have fled to Pakistan for sanctuary from the prolonged violence and war that has plagued Afghanistan

Incentive
- Many people have chosen to immigrate to Pakistan because it is the most accessible place to them (borders most of Afghanistan compared to other countries) that is not under the control of the Taliban. Although conditions for Afghan refugees in Pakistan may not be the best, it is safer than staying in Afghanistan

Cost
- Undocumented Afghan refugees in Pakistan (Pakistan has not registered new refugees since 2007) are restricted in their ability to find work, shelter, and education, and are vulnerable to abuse from the police because they have no legal protections. This means that they can’t go outside for fear of their lives, so they have no income and are at risk of being sent back to Afghanistan

Benefit
- Girls and kids can continue to receive an education in Pakistan despite being undocumented

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Afghan refugee girls continue their education in Pakistan • FRANCE 24 English

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Cost
- Having to try and escape under very dangerous conditions, risking their lives in order to escape; people have been shot or beaten trying to cross the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan

Benefits
- Being closer to safety away from the Taliban, most people in camps are receiving aid from other countries as well

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Settlement Activity
- As one of the countries bordering Afghanistan, people in Afghanistan have tried to flee to Pakistan but some were killed after trying to cross the border illegally because they don’t have the paperwork to go to Pakistan. For some people, it’s the only place to flee to as the UK and the US have stopped evacuations for Afghan refugees
- People have been converging specifically in a town in Afghanistan called Spin Boldak which borders Pakistan, camps have been set up and aid has been provided by Muslim non-governmental organizations because Pakistan is closing its borders. It has become a migration bottleneck because of the significant amount of Afghan citizens trying to flee through this border.

Environmental Impact
- People are forced to stay in camps outside the borders of Pakistan due to the large influx of refugees in the country. Specifically in Spin Boldak, farm animals have been suffering and killed off by droughts: "One Kutchi man told me how he lost 200 sheep and 10 camels due to the drought, and now his herd is down to only two goats... the Kutchi's traditional grazing lands are drought-affected, they've lost their herds, and they're slowly losing their skills and way of life. It'll be much harder to get them out of camps in the current situation."(https://www.unhcr.org/news/feature-aid-drying-afghanistans-spin-boldak-region ) It is difficult for people to leave the camps and rebuild their lives in Afghanistan.

Cultural Impact
- The crossing of Spin Boldak is open to continue trade, but Afghan refugees are kept to a strict system in order to be allowed to cross, consisting of having the right papers and reasons to enter Pakistan. However, the situation is getting more and more dangerous because of all the people overcrowding around the crossing. People are getting trampled over in the struggle to reach the border and the security checkpoints are now covered by the Taliban. The strict security and harsh nature of the Taliban guarding these points will impact the conditions of the people camping out at Spin Boldak.

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Settlement Activity
- The Taliban seized control over Afghanistan. This governmental overturn is a cultural settlement activity because it heavily impacted the political nature of Afghanistan moving forward.
- The people in Afghanistan are still suffering from the effects of Covid and the war and violence that have been plaguing their country, their economic state is very grim and the Taliban have not been making any changes that are improving the socio-economic state of their country. This is an environmental and economic settlement activity because this is discussing the impact that disease has on Afghan people and how the government (the Taliban) is dealing with the suffering economy of Afghanistan.

Environmental Impact
- Schools for girls are closed down in Afghanistan, meaning lots of buildings are being abandoned

- Afghanistan is also being impacted by natural disasters such as droughts and earthquakes, which could affect the people living in rural areas and displaced from their homes

Cultural Impact
- The Taliban imposed many rules that restrict women from having basic rights, such as not being to have an education, having to cover themselves up, not being able to have a job, etc.  This affects them socially and culturally, as many of these bans limit women’s abilities in social interaction and work. This also is a political impact because the government is imposing these rules on women in Afghanistan because of a change in their political structure and beliefs.

- People within Afghanistan have also been displaced from their homes after fleeing from fighting, making so a large number of people are left without homes and jobs (demographic)

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Choice
- A large amount of the Afghan population has been displaced from their homes within Afghanistan because of violence and war, forced out of their homes because of poverty, food insecurity, and violence; most are women and children

- Most Afghan people are leaving their homes in order to escape Afghanistan and the Taliban

Incentive(s)
- To escape the Taliban’s return to power, especially women and young girls because they are the main victims of the extreme religious implementation of laws and gender discrimination that the Taliban is establishing in Afghanistan

- To find safety, escape violence, poverty, and economic suffering

Cost
Explicit: Having to endure harsh journeys to escape Afghanistan. The refugees have no money or source of income and had to leave their belongings and house behind.
Implicit: Having to leave their hometown, possibly suffering with the separation of families and loss of loved ones, as well as the harsh mental effect that comes with enduring violence and escaping under harsh conditions.

Benefits
Explicit: The UNHCR and other external aids are helping Afghan refugees by providing basic health services, money, shelter, food, and other essential items.
Implicit: Being under safer conditions as they are farther away from the violence and terrorism under the rule of the Taliban, feeling a stronger sense of security and safety. They are not completely alone anymore.

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- The Taliban is a religious extremist political group, it was a result of the Afghan War (1978-92) after Soviet troops were withdrawn from Afghanistan
-The people in Afghanistan were suffering from the aftermath of the war and were quick to support the mujahideen and its religious rhetoric, which later became the Taliban
- The Taliban took over Kabul in 1996 and quickly gained control over almost all of Afghanistan, following strict and oppressive religious values which excluded women from most parts of society and induced harsh criminal punishments; they were dismissive of human rights and banned watching TV, listening to music, and more. Women were not allowed to go outside without a male counterpart, attend school, and were forced to cover themselves at all times
- At the time, the Taliban was harbouring Osama bin Laden and the Al Qaeda movement, which had previously launched attacks on the US (including the event of 9/11)
- The US and its allies began fighting back against the Taliban; the Afghanistan war lasted from 2001-2014, and the Taliban barely survived
- In February 2020, the US and the Taliban agreed on a peace deal, where empty promises by the Taliban were made on the basis that the US withdraw their troops from Afghanistan
- Within months, the Taliban had regained control over Afghanistan and, disregarding all of the promises that they made and the lies about reform within their organisation; their harsh regime was once again reinforced
- Taliban continued their oppression of women and established strict rules once again, and to this day women and children are still suffering under the unjust rule of the Taliban; the Taliban has also resumed public executions and beatings for women that go outside without a male counterpart or break any rules regarding their social activity