Afghanistan Cross-border return to internal displacement Continuous armed conflict, insecurity, human rights violations and recurrent disasters mean that flight and mobility have become a familiar coping strategy for many Afghans for almost four decades. Large numbers of people have experienced some form of displacement in their lives. becoming refugees and then returning to find they are unable to resettle sustainably at home. The reasons for their plight are manifold, but those most commonly cited are the struggle to find a place to live, a lack of livelihood opportunities and pervasive insecurity. There are currently around 1.6 million IDPs in the country and their number continues to grow, primarily as a result of conflict. There are also millions of registered and undocumented Afghan refugees living in neighbouring Pakistan and Iran, and a significant number who have sought international protection elsewhere, mainly in Europe and Australia. Overall, Afghanistan continues to be the second largest source country for refugees, behind Syria.241 Their inability to re-establish their lives in their places of origin has led many to undertake dangerous journeys further afield. More than half of those who entered Europe via Greece in the first three months of 2016 said they had initially been displaced internally, and another quarter were first or second generation refugees who had never lived in Afghanistan.242 Many Afghans have been displaced more than once, whether within their own country or by More recently, however, Afghans’ migration options have narrowed considerably. The adoption of restrictive border control measures and deterrence policies in 2016 means that Europe SPOT LIGHT An internally displaced man, having returned from Pakistan three years ago, works on full-day duty in a government school as a watchman and earns $70 dollars per month. Photo: NRC/ Enayatullah Azad, October 2016 OFF THE GRID: Are today’s IDPs tomorrow’s refugees and migrants? 61