QUETTA: The government in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province will intensify its crackdown against illegal immigrants “in the coming days and weeks”, a senior official said on Tuesday, hoping the government repatriates around 100,000-150,000 undocumented individuals from the country by Nov. 30.
Thousands of Afghans living in Pakistan for decades started returning to their country this month, fearing arrest and deportation. Pakistan’s caretaker government last month handed all illegal immigrants an ultimatum: leave by Nov. 1 or face arrest and deportation.
Around 1.7 million out of a total of four million Afghan nationals in Pakistan are not registered, Pakistani officials say. Pakistan, wary of the presence of illegal immigrants in the country amid a spike in militant attacks as it reels from an economic crisis, has repeatedly accused Afghan nationals of being involved in militant activities and organized crime.
“The provincial government in Balochistan has decided to intensify the process against illegal citizens in coming days,” Jan Achakzai, caretaker information minister of Balochistan, told reporters during a press conference.
“And we are hoping that the government will repatriate around 100,000 to 150,000 illegal immigrants from Balochistan by Nov. 30.”
Achakzai said around 66,000 illegal immigrants returned to Afghanistan through the Chaman border crossing in the last seven days. Of these, he said, 26,000 illegal immigrants had traveled to Chaman from Sindh.
The minister vowed that the government would ensure the implementation of the law against every undocumented person in Pakistan.
“There should not be any misconception that any illegal citizen could hide from law enforcing agencies or that any financially strong illegal immigrant could escape repatriation by bribing our government organizations,” Achakzai said.
“The state has made a clear decision that all illegal citizens will be repatriated indiscriminately.”
Pakistan has hosted millions of Afghans over the decades, including those who fled their country during the 1979-1989 Soviet occupation, and the US invasion of Afghanistan in 2001.
According to the UN Refugee agency, around 600,000 Afghan nationals fled to Pakistan when the Taliban recaptured Kabul in August 2021.
To speed up the repatriation process of citizens, Pakistan has set up holding centers in many parts of the country where undocumented Afghan citizens are kept. Pakistan’s caretaker interior minister has said the government provides food, medicines and shelter to Afghan nationals at holding centers before they are repatriated with dignity to their respective countries.
Achakzai said Pakistan has been repatriating illegal citizens as per international law. He said the government has taken 200 illegal Afghan nationals in custody at a holding center in Quetta.
The minister dispelled the notion that the crackdown against illegal citizens would halt after the upcoming general elections.
“But we will set a roadmap for the coming regime to continue action against illegal citizens in Balochistan,” Achakzai said.
Although Pakistan says it is not targeting Afghan nationals only, who constitute the bulk of foreign nationals in Pakistan, Afghans have complained of harassment by Pakistani authorities.
Many have claimed that despite possessing the legal documents to stay, police and authorities are harassing them to leave Pakistan.
International rights groups have called on Pakistan to ensure the repatriation process is safe and voluntary.
Balochistan government vows to ‘intensify’ crackdown against illegal immigrants
https://arab.news/5bhwd
Balochistan government vows to ‘intensify’ crackdown against illegal immigrants
- Around 66,000 Afghan nationals left Pakistan during last 7 days via Chaman border, says official
- Pakistan last month told illegal immigrants to leave by Nov.1 or face arrest and deportation
US freezes visa processing for 75 countries, media reports Pakistan included
- State Department announces indefinite pause on immigrant visas starting Jan 21
- Move underscores Trump’s hard-line immigration push despite close Pakistan-US ties
ISLAMABAD: The United States will pause immigrant visa processing for applicants from 75 countries starting Jan. 21, the State Department said on Wednesday, with Fox News and other media outlets reporting that Pakistan is among the countries affected by the indefinite suspension.
The move comes as the Trump administration presses ahead with a broad immigration crackdown, with Pakistan included among the affected countries despite strong ongoing diplomatic engagement between Islamabad and Washington on economic cooperation, regional diplomacy and security matters.
Fox News, citing an internal State Department memo, said US embassies had been instructed to refuse immigrant visas under existing law while Washington reassesses screening and vetting procedures. The report said the pause would apply indefinitely and covers countries across Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Europe and Latin America.
“The State Department will pause immigrant visa processing from 75 countries whose migrants take welfare from the American people at unacceptable rates. The freeze will remain active until the US can ensure that new immigrants will not extract wealth from the American people,” the Department of State said in a post on X.
According to Fox News and Pakistan news outlets like Dawn, the list of affected countries includes Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Iran, Iraq, Egypt, Nigeria, Russia, Somalia, Brazil and Thailand, among others.
“The suspension could delay travel, study, and work plans for thousands of Pakistanis who annually seek US visas. Pakistani consulates in the US are expected to provide guidance to affected applicants in the coming days,” Dawn reported.
A State Department spokesman declined comment when Arab News reached out via email to confirm if Pakistan was on the list.
The Department has not publicly released the full list of countries or clarified which visa categories would be affected, nor has it provided a timeline for when processing could resume.
Trump has made immigration enforcement a central pillar of his agenda since returning to office last year, reviving and expanding the use of the “public charge” provision of US immigration law to restrict entry by migrants deemed likely to rely on public benefits.
During his previous term as president, Trump imposed sweeping travel restrictions on several Muslim-majority countries, a policy widely referred to as a “Muslim ban,” which was challenged in US courts before a revised version was upheld by the Supreme Court. That policy was later rescinded under the President Joe Biden administration.
The latest visa freeze marks a renewed hardening of US immigration policy, raising uncertainty for migrants from affected countries as Washington reassesses its screening and vetting procedures.
The freeze on visas comes amid an intensifying crackdown on immigration enforcement by the Trump administration. In Minneapolis last week, a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent shot and killed 37-year-old Renee Good, a US citizen, during a federal operation, an incident that has drawn nationwide protests and scrutiny of ICE tactics. Family members and local officials have challenged the federal account of the shooting, even as Department of Homeland Security officials defended the agent’s actions. The case has prompted resignations by federal prosecutors and heightened debate over the conduct of immigration enforcement under the current administration.
