The forced expulsion of Afghan migrants from Pakistan continues into its fifth day, with the most recent figures indicating that the number of deported immigrants has reached over 167,000.
Eyewitnesses report that Pakistani authorities are conducting house-to-house search operations to facilitate the deportation of Afghan migrants.
The Taliban’s embassy in Islamabad has strongly criticized what it perceives as the sluggish work process of the United Nations Refugee Agency, asserting that thousands of individuals are stranded at the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan due to this delay.
In Karachi, at least 900 residences were subjected to police searches in pursuit of undocumented Afghan immigrants, according to sources.
Irfan Bahadur, a senior police officer in Pakistan, stated, “During house inspections, refugees with valid residence proof cards and Afghan citizenship cards were released. However, those lacking valid documents or a legal reason for their stay were detained and will be transferred to detention centers.”
Buses carrying arrested migrants for forced deportation include women and children. Additionally, many immigrants have hastily prepared to return to Afghanistan before the authorities arrive at their doors.
“We are helpless. We have nothing in our homeland—no home, nowhere to go. We’ve been waiting here for the past two days, but no one is facilitating our passage. What should we do?” expressed one immigrant.
In Pakistan’s Landi Kotal district, a local institution provides healthcare services for Afghan immigrants, primarily focusing on mothers and children who require medical attention.
Moqtadar Shah, head of the Al-Khidmat Foundation in Landi Kotal, remarked, “Many patients here are suffering from colds, the flu, fever, and other illnesses. A significant number of them are experiencing depression, wondering what they will do in Afghanistan when they have nothing there.”
Islamabad has announced its intention to deport approximately 2 million immigrants, excluding only those awaiting transfer to the United States from the forced deportation process.
Furthermore, the Pakistani government has confirmed that Afghan citizens awaiting relocation to the U.S. will not be subject to deportation.
