ISLAMABAD: Over 7,000 Afghan nationals were sent back to their home country on Tuesday, state broadcaster Radio Pakistan said on Wednesday, while over 913,000 Afghans have been repatriated since the government launched a mass deportation drive in 2023.
Earlier this year, Pakistan’s interior ministry asked all “illegal foreigners” and holders of Afghan Citizen Cards — a document launched in 2017 to grant temporary legal status to Afgan refugees — to leave the country before Mar. 31, warning that they would otherwise be deported from April 1.
The move is part of a larger repatriation drive of foreign citizens that began in November 2023, with over 900,000 Afghans expelled from Pakistan since. The government initially said it was first focusing on expelling foreigners with no legal documentation and other categories like ACC holders would be included later.
More than 800,000 Afghans hold an ACC in Pakistan, according to UN data. Another roughly 1.3 million are formally registered with the Pakistan government and hold a separate Proof of Residence (PoR) card, launched in 2006 to grant legal recognition and protection to Afghan refugees. In total, Pakistan has hosted over 2.8 million Afghan refugees who crossed the border during 40 years of conflict in their homeland.
“Over 7,000 illegal Afghan nationals were sent back to their homeland yesterday [Tuesday] and the total number of illegal Afghan nationals leaving Pakistan has reached 913,301,” Radio Pakistan said in its daily update report on the deportation campaign.
“The government is ensuring the dignified return of illegal foreign nationals and Afghan Citizen Card holders to their home countries.”
Pakistani officials said earlier this week over 13,500 Afghan nationals had been repatriated since April 1.
Separately, officials in the eastern Pakistani province of Punjab said 6,132 “illegal immigrants” had been deported from the provincial capital of Lahore and across the province and over 8,227 had been sent to holding centers.
Pakistan’s deportation policy in 2023 followed a rise in suicide attacks, particularly in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province that borders Afghanistan. Islamabad has in the past blamed militant attacks and other crimes on Afghan citizens, who form the largest portion of migrants in the country. The government says militants, especially from the Pakistan Taliban (TTP), are using safe havens in Afghanistan and links with Afghans residing in Pakistan to launch cross-border attacks. The ruling administration in Kabul has rejected the accusations.
International rights groups accuse Pakistani police and authorities of harassing and intimidating Afghan refugees during the forced expulsion drive, which Pakistani officials deny.
“There is no doubt that the forced deportation of Afghan migrants and this unilateral action is against all international, Islamic, and neighborly principles,” Abdul Motalib Haqqani, a spokesman for the Afghan ministry of migration and repatriation, said in a statement on Tuesday.
“Since this matter concerns two countries, it is essential to work on a mutually agreed mechanism to ensure the dignified return of Afghans to their homeland.”
Human rights groups have also raised concerns.
“Pakistan is abandoning its international commitment to not send people back to where their rights are at risk,” said Fereshta Abbasi of Afghanistan Human Rights Watch. “All countries hosting Afghan refugees should maintain the position that Afghanistan is unsafe for returns.”
With inputs from Reuters
Over 913,000 Afghans repatriated from Pakistan since Nov. 2023 — state media
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Over 913,000 Afghans repatriated from Pakistan since Nov. 2023 — state media
- Pakistan has asked all “illegal foreigners” and Afghan Citizen Card holders to leave or face deportation from April 1
- Move is part of larger repatriation drive of foreign citizens that began in November 2023 following rise in militancy
Pakistan forces killed 145 militants after Balochistan attacks— chief minister
- Militants carried out coordinated attacks across Balochistan’s Quetta, Gwadar, Panjgur and other areas on Friday and Saturday
- Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti says 31 civilians, 17 law enforcement personnel killed in attacks, vows not to surrender to militants
ISLAMABAD: The chief minister of Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province announced on Sunday that security forces had killed 145 militants in 40 hours after militant attacks in many parts of Balochistan this week, vowing that the government will continue fighting militancy.
Separatist militants launched attacks in various areas of Balochistan province on Friday and Saturday, Pakistan’s military said in an earlier statement, prompting security forces to respond. The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said Pakistani forces carried out operations in Panjgur and Harnai areas on Friday to kill 41 militants.
On Saturday, it said 92 more militants were killed in Quetta, Gwadar, Mastung, Nushki, Dalbandin, Kharan, Panjgur, Tump and Pasni areas as security forces repelled coordinated attacks on civilians and law enforcers.
Pakistan’s military said the attacks were launched by “Indian-sponsored Fitna al Hindustan,” a reference the military frequently uses for the separatist Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) militant group. The BLA also issued a statement on Saturday, saying it had launched what it called “Operation Herof 2.0,” claiming responsibility for attacks in multiple locations across Balochistan.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi accused India of being behind the attacks, blaming New Delhi for planning the militant attacks in the province. India has always refuted Pakistan’s allegations of backing militant outfits in the country.
“We managed to kill 145 terrorists in 40 hours,” Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti told reporters during a news conference.
He said 17 law enforcement personnel, which included policemen, Frontier Corps personnel and a navy serviceman, were killed in the attacks. Civilian casualties totaled 31, he added.
The chief minister praised security forces for killing over 1,500 militants last year and conducting over 58,000 intelligence-based operations across Balochistan.
Bugti vowed that the government would not surrender to militants and would continue to fight them until they are eliminated.
“We will fight this war for 1,000 years,” he said. “This country is ours. This is our motherland. We will fight for it.”
Balochistan, which borders Iran and Afghanistan, has faced a decades-long insurgency by separatist militant groups, with Pakistani authorities frequently accusing foreign actors of backing the violence. India has repeatedly denied such allegations.
Islamabad says separatist elements hide in sanctuaries in neighboring Afghanistan, along with the Pakistani Taliban militant group, and launch attacks against Pakistan. Afghanistan denies the allegations.
Ethnic Baloch militant groups such as the BLA demand independence from Pakistan. They blame Islamabad for denying the local Baloch population a share in the province’s mineral wealth.
Pakistan’s federal government and the military deny the allegations and point to several social and economic projects undertaken by the government for the benefit of the masses in Balochistan.
