Baku, Sep 25 (IANS): Most of the refugees seeking asylum in Azerbaijan are Afghans, Elsever Agayev, chief consultant of the Azerbaijani Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, said here Tuesday.

There are 1,520 refugees and asylum seekers in Azerbaijan. Chechens and Iranians are the next in line in terms of number of asylum seekers, Xinhua reported citing Agayev as saying.

As the conflict in Afghanistan continues after more than one decade, Afghan civilians pay the heavy price.

Violence has been increasing in intensity and spreading to previously peaceful areas. The gains made in improving health and education are increasingly fragile due to insecurity, corruption, and the politicization of aid.

While the international community has acknowledged that the problems in Afghanistan shall not be solved by military means alone, the US strategy continues to focus on security objectives and fails to address the needs of the most vulnerable Afghans.