ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Foreign Office has said that the participation of foreign nationals in any political activity in Pakistan is “unacceptable,” days after authorities said they had arrested dozens of Afghan nationals during violent protests in Islamabad this week.
Clashes broke out between law enforcers and supporters of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party this week after they set out for Islamabad in caravans from different parts of the country to demand the release of Khan, who has been in jail since August 2023.
The government accused the PTI of deploying Afghan nationals to take part in the anti-government protests and said authorities had arrested over 1,100 Khan supporters, including 60 Afghan nationals living illegally in the country, who had stormed the Pakistani capital earlier this week.
Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Wednesday announced that Afghan nationals would not be allowed to stay in the federal capital of Islamabad without proper authorization after December 31, 2024.
Asked about the impact of seeking permission to stay in Islamabad for even the 3 million legal Afghan refugees, Pakistani Foreign Office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said the Pakistani interior ministry would soon issue details of the policy.
“We expect all foreigners in Pakistan to respect Pakistani laws and customs,” she said at a weekly press briefing in Islamabad on Friday. “Details of the policy with regards to continued stay of Afghan nationals in Islamabad will also be released by the Ministry of Interior.”
The move comes as the latest blow to Afghans living in Pakistan, with nearly 800,000 that Islamabad says were residing in the country ‘illegally’ expelled since November last year when the government launched a deportation drive that has drawn widespread criticism from international governments and rights organizations.
Pakistan began expelling illegal foreigners from Nov. 1, 2023, following a spike in bombings which the government said were carried out by Afghan nationals or by militants who crossed over into Pakistan from neighboring Afghanistan.
Islamabad has also blamed illegal Afghan immigrants and refugees for involvement in smuggling and other crimes. The Taliban government in Kabul says Pakistan’s security and other challenges are a domestic issue and cannot be blamed on the neighbor.
“I am not aware of any communication that has taken place,” Baloch said, when asked if the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) had contacted Pakistan about the deadline announced for Afghan refugees living in Islamabad.
“The Ministry of Interior will share with the media the details of these Afghan nationals and their status in Pakistan.”
Participation of foreign nationals in political activities in Pakistan ‘unacceptable,’ FO says
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Participation of foreign nationals in political activities in Pakistan ‘unacceptable,’ FO says
- Statement comes after government accuses ex-PM Khan’s party of deploying Afghan nationals in this week’s protests in Islamabad
- Pakistan has said that Afghan nationals won’t be allowed to stay in Islamabad without proper authorization after December 31
Pakistan to launch AI screening in January to target fake visas, agent networks
- New system to flag forged-document travelers before boarding and pre-verify eligibility
- Move comes amid increasing concern over fake visas, fraudulent agents, forged papers
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will roll out an AI-based immigration screening system in Islamabad from January to detect forged documents and prevent illegal overseas travel, the government said on Thursday.
The move comes amid increasing concern over fake visas, fraudulent agents and forged papers, with officials warning that such activity has contributed to deportations, human smuggling and reputational damage abroad. Pakistan has also faced scrutiny over irregular migration flows and labor-market vulnerability, particularly in the Gulf region, prompting calls for more reliable pre-departure checks and digital verification.
The reforms include plans to make the protector-stamp system — the clearance required for Pakistani citizens seeking overseas employment — “foolproof”, tighten labor-visa documentation, and cancel the passports of deportees to prevent them from securing visas again. The government has sought final recommendations within seven days, signalling a rapid enforcement timeline.
“To stop illegal immigration, an AI-based app pilot project is being launched in Islamabad from January,” Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said following a high-level meeting chaired by him and Minister for Overseas Pakistanis Chaudhry Salik Hussain.
Naqvi said the new screening technology is intended to determine travelers’ eligibility in advance, reducing airport off-loads and closing loopholes exploited by traffickers and unregistered agents.
The interior minister added that Pakistan remains in contact with foreign governments to improve the global perception and ranking of the green passport, while a uniform international driving license will be issued through the National Police Bureau.
The meeting also approved zero-tolerance measures against fraudulent visa brokers, while the Overseas Pakistanis Ministry pledged full cooperation to streamline the emigration workflow. Minister Hussain said transparency in the protector process has become a “basic requirement,” particularly for labor-migration cases.
Pakistan’s current immigration system has long struggled with document fraud, with repeated cases of passengers grounded at airports due to forged papers or agent-facilitated travel. The launch of an AI screening layer, if implemented effectively, could shift the burden from manual counters to pre-flight verification, allowing authorities to identify risk profiles before departure rather than after arrival abroad.
The reforms also come at a moment when labor mobility is tightening globally. Gulf states have begun demanding greater documentation assurance for imported labor, while European and Asian destinations have increased scrutiny following trafficking arrests and irregular-entry routes from South Asia. For Pakistan, preventing fraudulent departures is increasingly linked to protecting genuine workers, reducing deportation cycles and stabilizing the country’s overseas employment footprint.
