Latest news with #MihyungPark
Al Jazeera
18-04-2025
- Business
- Al Jazeera
Pakistan confirms its expulsion of more than 80,000 Afghans since April 1
Pakistan has confirmed to have repatriated more than 80,000 Afghan nationals since April 1, before an extended April 30 deadline for the country's largest migrant group in an initiative labelled as 'forced deportation' by Afghanistan. Talal Chaudhry, Pakistan's Interior Ministry adviser, told reporters in Islamabad on Friday that there would be no more extensions to the Illegal Foreigners Repatriation Plan launched in late 2023 for more than three million Afghans. 'We have communicated clear instructions to all provinces, if anyone gives a shop, house, or any kind of space to an illegal foreigner, they will be held accountable under the law,' he said. Those lacking valid documents or holding Afghan Citizen Cards had initially been ordered to leave by March 31. That deadline was later extended by a month. On Tuesday, the International Organization for Migration, a UN entity, said Pakistan has expelled nearly 60,000 Afghans since the start of April. 'With a new wave of large-scale returns now under way from Pakistan, needs on the ground are rising rapidly – both at the border and in areas of return that are struggling to absorb large numbers of returnees,' Mihyung Park, head of the IOM's Afghanistan mission, said at the time. More than 1.3 million Afghans who hold Proof of Registration cards from the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, have also been told to move outside the capital Islamabad and the neighbouring city of Rawalpindi. On Saturday, Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar is due to visit Kabul, where he will head a delegation for high-level talks with the Taliban-led government. 'The talks will cover the entire gamut of the Pakistan-Afghan relationship, focusing on ways and means to deepen cooperation in all areas of mutual interests, including security, trade, connectivity, and people-to-people ties,' said a statement from Pakistan's foreign office. The crackdown threatens to uproot Afghan families that have been in the country for decades. Earlier this month, Akber Khan, who owns a restaurant in the northwest Pakistani city of Peshawar, told The Associated Press news agency: 'I have been here for almost 50 years. I got married here, so did my children, and 10 of my family members are buried here. That's why we have no desire to leave.' At least a third of the Afghans Pakistan wants to expel this year live in the northwest province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. 'Afghans can never be completely repatriated, especially from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, as they return using illegal channels or exploiting loopholes in the system despite fencing at the border,' said Abdullah Khan, managing director of the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies, to Al Jazeera. Islamabad has frequently linked Afghan refugees to rising security threats and criminal activity within its borders – allegations rejected by Kabul, which has described the campaign as forced deportation and politically motivated. Authorities in Pakistan say they have established temporary holding centres across multiple cities to process and accommodate Afghan nationals before their return. Most are being transported to the Torkham border crossing in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, the key route into eastern Afghanistan. Human rights groups have criticised the repatriation drive, warning that mass expulsions risk endangering vulnerable people, particularly women and children, who may face insecurity or persecution upon return. Despite these concerns, Pakistani officials maintain that the crackdown targets only those who remain in the country without legal authorisation, insisting the policy is a matter of national security.
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Pakistan accelerates deportation of Afghans: UN
Pakistan has ramped up the forced mass deportation of Afghan refugees and migrants, with nearly 60,000 having crossed the border since the start of April, the United Nations International Organization for Migration (IOM) said. Nearly three million Afghans in Pakistan are facing deportation after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced in October a three-phase plan to send them back to their home country. The IOM said in a statement on Tuesday that it has assisted more than one million people returning from Pakistan and Iran. Amid the second phase of the plan, the IOM said it had registered a sharp rise in forced returns. Between April 1 and April 13, nearly 60,000 individuals crossed into Afghanistan through the Torkham and Spin Boldak border points, it noted. 'With a new wave of large-scale returns now underway from Pakistan, needs on the ground are rising rapidly – both at the border and in areas of return that are struggling to absorb large numbers of returnees,' said Mihyung Park, head of the agency's Afghanistan mission. In March, Islamabad set an early April deadline for some 800,000 people carrying Afghan Citizen Cards (ACC) issued by Pakistani authorities to leave the country. Families with their belongings in tow have crowded key border crossings of Torkham in the north and Spin Boldak in the south, recalling scenes in 2023 when tens of thousands of Afghans fled deportation threats in of the Afghans have been living in Pakistan for decades after fleeing successive conflicts in their country and following the Taliban's return to power in 2021. The deportation order came amid a dramatic increase in armed attacks across Pakistan, with the government blaming groups and nationals based in Afghanistan, an allegation the Taliban government in Kabul has rejected. Among those facing deportation is Afghan journalist Freshta Sadid, who holds a valid exit permit, according to the Joint Action Committee for Refugees. The group is calling for 'urgent action' to protect Sadid, warning that she is on the Taliban 'hit list'. Pakistan is not a signatory to the UN's 1951 Refugee Convention that protects the rights of refugees. The country also lacks domestic laws to protect refugees, as well as procedures to determine the status of individuals seeking international protection within its borders.
Observer
15-04-2025
- Politics
- Observer
Nearly 60,000 Afghans return from Pakistan
KABUL: Nearly 60,000 Afghans have been forced to leave Pakistan since the start of April, the International Organization for Migration said, after Islamabad ramped up a campaign to deport migrants to Afghanistan. "Between 1 and 13 April 2025, IOM recorded a sharp rise in forced returns, with nearly 60,000 individuals crossing back into Afghanistan through the Torkham and Spin Boldak border points," the UN agency said in a statement. Families with their belongings in tow have crowded the crossings at Torkham in the north and Spin Boldak in the south, recalling scenes in 2023 when tens of thousands of Afghans fled deportation threats in Pakistan. "With a new wave of large-scale returns now underway from Pakistan, needs on the ground are rising rapidly — both at the border and in areas of return that are struggling to absorb large numbers of returnees," said Mihyung Park, head of the IOM's Afghanistan mission. - AFP
Al Jazeera
15-04-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Pakistan accelerates deportation of Afghans: UN
Pakistan has ramped up the forced mass deportation of Afghan refugees and migrants, with nearly 60,000 having crossed the border since the start of April, the United Nations International Organization for Migration (IOM) said. Nearly three million Afghans in Pakistan are facing deportation after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced in October a three-phase plan to send them back to their home country. The IOM said in a statement on Tuesday that it has assisted more than one million people returning from Pakistan and Iran. Amid the second phase of the plan, the IOM said it had registered a sharp rise in forced returns. Between April 1 and April 13, nearly 60,000 individuals crossed into Afghanistan through the Torkham and Spin Boldak border points, it noted. 'With a new wave of large-scale returns now underway from Pakistan, needs on the ground are rising rapidly – both at the border and in areas of return that are struggling to absorb large numbers of returnees,' said Mihyung Park, head of the agency's Afghanistan mission. In March, Islamabad set an early April deadline for some 800,000 people carrying Afghan Citizen Cards (ACC) issued by Pakistani authorities to leave the country. Families with their belongings in tow have crowded key border crossings of Torkham in the north and Spin Boldak in the south, recalling scenes in 2023 when tens of thousands of Afghans fled deportation threats in Pakistan. Many of the Afghans have been living in Pakistan for decades after fleeing successive conflicts in their country and following the Taliban's return to power in 2021. The deportation order came amid a dramatic increase in armed attacks across Pakistan, with the government blaming groups and nationals based in Afghanistan, an allegation the Taliban government in Kabul has rejected. Among those facing deportation is Afghan journalist Freshta Sadid, who holds a valid exit permit, according to the Joint Action Committee for Refugees. The group is calling for 'urgent action' to protect Sadid, warning that she is on the Taliban 'hit list'. Pakistan is not a signatory to the UN's 1951 Refugee Convention that protects the rights of refugees. The country also lacks domestic laws to protect refugees, as well as procedures to determine the status of individuals seeking international protection within its borders.
Arab News
15-04-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
Nearly 60,000 Afghans returned from Pakistan in two weeks— UN agency
KABUL: Nearly 60,000 Afghans have been forced to leave Pakistan since the start of April, the International Organization for Migration said Tuesday, after Islamabad ramped up a campaign to deport migrants to Afghanistan. 'Between 1 and 13 April 2025, IOM recorded a sharp rise in forced returns, with nearly 60,000 individuals crossing back into Afghanistan through the Torkham and Spin Boldak border points,' the UN agency said in a statement. 'With a new wave of large-scale returns now underway from Pakistan, needs on the ground are rising rapidly — both at the border and in areas of return that are struggling to absorb large numbers of returnees,' said Mihyung Park, head of the agency's Afghanistan mission. Pakistan last month set an early April deadline for some 800,000 Afghans carrying Afghan Citizen Cards (ACC) issued by Pakistan authorities to leave the country. Families with their belongings in tow have crowded key border crossings of Torkham in the north and Spin Boldak in the south, recalling scenes in 2023 when tens of thousands of Afghans fled deportation threats in Pakistan. The UN says nearly three million Afghans live in Pakistan, many having been there for decades, after fleeing successive conflicts in their country and following the Taliban's return to power in Kabul in 2021.
