KARACHI: Pakistan set a Nov. 1 deadline for all foreigners without legal documents, including more than a million Afghans, to leave the country or face forcible expulsion.
Here are key facts about Islamabad’s plan to deport hundreds of thousands back to its western neighbor Afghanistan:
- Pakistan announced the Wednesday deadline on Oct. 3, giving more than a million people about four weeks to move.
- The sudden expulsion threat came after suicide bombings this year that the government said involved Afghans, though without providing evidence. Islamabad has also blamed them for smuggling and other militant attacks as well as petty crimes.
- Islamabad says Afghan nationals were found to be involved in attacks against government and the army, including 14 of this year’s 24 suicide bombings.
- Pakistan is home to more than 4 million Afghan migrants and refugees, about 1.7 million of them undocumented, according to Islamabad, although many have lived in Pakistan for their entire lives.
- About 600,000 Afghans have crossed into Pakistan since the Taliban took over in 2021, joining a large number present since the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979 and the ensuing civil wars.
- More than 60,000 Afghans returned to Afghanistan from Pakistan between Sept. 23 and Oct. 22, ahead of the deadline, with thousands more expected to have been on the move last week.
- Islamabad says deportation will be orderly, carried out in phases and start with those who have criminal records. Authorities have vowed raids in areas suspected of housing “undocumented foreigners” after Wednesday.
- Authorities have set up “holding centers” to process deportees before they return to Afghanistan. Reuters could not determine how long they might be detained in the centers.
FACTBOX: Pakistan’s plan to expel over 1 million Afghans living in the country illegally
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FACTBOX: Pakistan’s plan to expel over 1 million Afghans living in the country illegally
- Pakistan announced Nov. 1 deadline on Oct. 3, giving over a million people about four weeks to move
- More than 60,000 Afghans returned to Afghanistan from Pakistan between Sept. 23 and Oct. 22
Deputy PM Dar in Beijing to co-chair 7th Pakistan–China Strategic Dialogue
- The foreign ministers’ dialogue is the highest consultative mechanism between Pakistan and China to review bilateral cooperation
- The two ministers will also announce a series of initiatives, activities to mark 75th anniversary of Pakistan-China diplomatic ties
ISLAMABAD: Pakistani Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar has arrived in Beijing to co-chair the 7th Pakistan–China Foreign Ministers’ Strategic Dialogue, the Pakistani foreign office said on Saturday.
The strategic dialogue is the highest consultative mechanism between Pakistan and China, providing a structured platform to review the entire spectrum of bilateral cooperation as well as regional and international developments of mutual interest.
Dar will co-chair the dialogue with Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Sunday.
“The Dialogue will review the full spectrum of bilateral cooperation, identify new areas of partnership, and further advance the All-Weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership between Pakistan and China,” the Pakistani foreign office said.
Pakistan and China have longstanding strategic, political, economic, defense and cultural relations. Both Islamabad and Beijing maintain close coordination on regional and international issues, frequently supporting each other’s core interests at multilateral forums.
China has also been an important investment partner for Pakistan and has funneled billions of dollars into the country under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) energy and infrastructure project for over a decade.
During the visit, the two foreign ministers will also announce a series of initiatives and commemorative activities to mark the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Pakistan and China in 2026.
“The visit forms an important part of the regular high-level exchanges between the two countries and reflects their shared determination to broaden and deepen the All-Weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership, while reaffirming their mutual commitment to regional peace, stability, and sustainable development,” the Pakistani foreign office said.
