Over 300 illegal Afghans deported from Sindh in ongoing repatriation drive
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Afghan nationals, who according to police were undocumented, are handcuffed as they are detained and shifted to a holding centre, after Pakistan gave the last warning to undocumented migrants to leave, in Karachi, Pakistan, November 1. — Reuters
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KARACHI: Information Minister Sharjeel Memon said on Sunday that the Sindh government has deported at least 307 illegal Afghan immigrants as part of a nationwide drive to return all non -documentary foreign nationals.
Memon said in a statement that after examining verification, legal proceedings and background, 307 Afghan nationals were returned home from Amin House transit camp. The exile included 191 men, 37 women and 79 children.
The federal government announced at the beginning of March that 800,000 Afghan citizen cards (ACC) would be canceled, which is the second phase of deportation, which has already forced 800,000 non -documentary Afghans across the border.
The country has been hosting millions of Afghans for almost five decades. In the past few years, hundreds of them have returned to their country, but more than 2.1 million Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and other provinces have been living in other provinces.
Pakistan on March 31, along with all the illegal Afghans, as well as the deadline for those with ACC cards to return to their country during the growing incidents of terrorism in the country.
According to the Center for Research and Security Studies in Islamabad, it was the deadliest year in Pakistan last year, in which more than 1,600 people lost their lives in the attacks-half of them security forces personnel.
Pakistan has accused the Taliban government of failing to root out militants seeking asylum on Afghan soil.
The Taliban government has repeatedly demanded the “dignity” return of Afghans to its country, Prime Minister Hassan Akhand has called on countries hosting Afghans not to force them.
On February 13, the Home Minister asked the Sindh government to start returning to all ACC holders to their country under the plan to repatriate illegal foreigners (IFRP). As part of the project, the voluntary return ended by March 31 and the “forced return” began on April 1.
Memon said in a statement today that a preliminary list of 313 people was compiled, and after the screening process, 307 were eligible for exile. He said that only these people are being deported illegally in the country.
The minister confirmed the government’s commitment to continue the campaign against non -documentary immigrants in compliance with international law and protocol.
He said, “Pakistan is withdrawing illegal immigrants according to global principles,” he said, adding that the operation of Sindh government will continue.
Number of Afghan refugees in Pakistan
According to data obtained by Geo News, there are currently 2.1 million registered and unregistered Afghan refugees in Pakistan.
Sources in the Ministry of State and Frontier Regions (Zafron) say 1.4 million Afghan refugees are legally registered, while 800,000 Afghan citizens have ‘Afghan Citizens Card’ (ACC), but now their establishment is considered illegal.
However, the government claims that the total number of Afghan refugees in Pakistan is three million, all of which will be brought back home this year under a plan for the deportation of foreign nationals.
Four varieties
Afghan citizens living in Pakistan for decades come in four types.
In the first type, Afghan citizens who fled to Pakistan due to instability in Afghanistan and were given the official status of refugees. In 2007, Pakistan issued evidence of registration (POR) card to these refugees, which now has about 1.3 million. The government issued these cards only once, and from time to time renewing them, the current justification expires on June 30, 2025.
The second type includes Afghan citizens who were issued an Afghan Citizens Card (ACC). In 2016, about 800,000 people received these cards, and they are now being brought back home as part of the deportation efforts.
The third type is Afghan citizens who fled to Pakistan after the Taliban occupation in 2021. These men were sheltered under the International Protocol. While the Pakistani government initially claimed that 600,000 Afghans had arrived after the US withdrawal, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) says only 200,000 were officially registered.
The fourth category includes non -documentary Afghan citizens who lack the status of both Purpur and ACC and are not registered as a seeking asylum since the arrival of 2021. This category also includes those who have married in Pakistan and obtained fake national identity cards. In the past two years, the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) has been canceling such fake identification IDs through its national verification and renewal campaign, now ranging on illegal residents.
