International Rescue Committee (IRC)

Return to Azakhel

Photos: 
A boy stands in front of stagnant water and debris in a photo from 2010
Two women stand outside a tent
Flood victim Mir Salam in a picture from a year ago, sits next to his belongings
An aerial view of Azakhel showing trees and a few cows, but no houses.
Elders at the Camp look over Peter Biro's photos from a year ago.
Mir Salam wearing a broad smile
Two young girls eating at Azakhel Camp
A young boy smiles at the camera
Akhtar Muhammad speaks to the IRC about life in Azakhil Camp
A mason lays bricks for a future religious school for girls
Photo: Peter Biro/IRC

A year ago the Azakhel Refugee Camp in western Pakistan was home to thousands of Afghan refugees. Many had lived there their entire lives and had build sturdy mud brick homes. But in August of 2010, the worst flash floods in living memory roared through the camp, washing the homes away. The IRC's Peter Biro documented the conditions with his camera immediately after the waters began to subside. Peter's colleague Ned Colt went back to Azakhel in the summer of 2011 to see what had changed.