ISLAMABAD: More than 20,000 pilgrims returned to Pakistan from Saudi Arabia since August 17, 2019 after completing the Hajj pilgrimage, the Ministry of Religious Affairs said in a statement released on Wednesday.
“[The returnees include] 14,000 from the government quota and 6,000 who were using services offered by private tour and Hajj operators,” Imran Siddiqui, MRA spokesman said in a statement, adding that 100,000 others are still in Makkah.
He added that special flights – which began on August 17 to bring the 200,000 pilgrims back – will continue until September 15.
“Elaborate arrangements have been made on Pakistan’s 10 airports to welcome the pilgrims on their return,” Siddiqui said, adding that this year, major airports in the country had also stocked up on Zamzam water – as part of an initiative by the Kingdom – to distribute among pilgrims upon their arrival home.
Pakistan’s Minister for Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony, Noor-ul-Haq Qadri lauded the Kingdom’s arrangements and hospitality extended to pilgrims during Hajj this year.
“We are thankful to King Salman, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi ministries of Interior, Hajj and also the governor of Makkah for the best arrangements for Hajj this year,” Qadri said in a statement on August 15.
For the first time this year, a pre-immigration pilot program was launched at the Islamabad International Airport as part of Saudi’s Road to Makkah project which Pakistan had been included in on Prime Minister Imran Khan’s request.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had made the announcement during his historic visit to Islamabad in February this year.
The initiative was aimed at facilitating Hajj pilgrims by way of a faster immigration process which helped them save up to 10 hours of waiting time on their arrival in Saudi Arabia.
Over 20,000 Pakistani pilgrims return home from Hajj
Over 20,000 Pakistani pilgrims return home from Hajj
- 110,000 others are still in Makkah
- Specially designated flights to bring the Hajjis home will continue until September 15
Challenges for millions pushed back to Afghanistan from Iran, Pakistan
- Over five million Afghans returned home since September 2023 as Iran, Pakistan ramp up deportations
- Those who returned face challenges in form of unemployment, lack of housing, shortage of electricity and water
KABUL: After decades hosting Afghans fleeing crises at home, Pakistan and Iran have ramped up deportations and forced millions back across the border to a country struggling to provide for them.
Whether arriving at the frontier surrounded by family or alone, Afghan returnees must establish a new life in a nation beset by poverty and environmental woes.
AFP takes a look at the people arriving in Afghanistan and the challenges they face.
FIVE MILLION
More than five million Afghans have returned home from Iran and Pakistan since September 2023, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
The figure equates to 10 percent of the country’s population, according to the agency’s deputy head in Afghanistan, Mutya Izora Maskun.
Three million returnees crossed the borders just last year, some of whom have spent decades living abroad.
Such a huge influx of people would be hard for any country to manage, Maskun said.
INADEQUATE HOUSING
Months after arriving in Afghanistan, 80 percent of people had no permanent home, according to an IOM survey of 1,339 migrants who returned between September 2023 and December 2024.
Instead, they had to live in temporary housing made from materials such as stone or mud.
More recently, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) spoke to Afghans who arrived back between January and August last year about their living arrangements.
Three-quarters of tenants said they could not afford their rent, while the majority of families were sharing rooms with up to four people, according to the survey of 1,658 returnees.
DESPERATE SEARCH FOR WORK
Just 11 percent of adults pushed back from Pakistan and Iran were fully employed, the IOM survey found.
For those who returned in the first few months of last year, the average monthly income was between $22 and $147, according to the UNHCR.
WATER, ELECTRICITY SHORTAGES
More than half the returnee households lack a stable electricity supply, according to the IOM.
The agency said that households headed by women faced “significantly higher vulnerabilities,” with around half of them struggling to access safe drinking water.
SPEEDING UP LAND DISTRIBUTION
More than 3,000 plots of land have been distributed to returnees nationwide, Hamdullah Fitrat, the Afghan government’s deputy spokesman, said in mid-January.
The process “was accelerated,” he said while recounting a special meeting with supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada.
On their arrival in Afghanistan, returnees usually receive help with transport, a SIM card and a small amount of money.
