Afghans returning to Afghanistan. Photo: WFP
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pakistan has temporarily halted the deportation of undocumented Afghan migrants following consultations with UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi.
Grandi, who ended a three-day visit on Tuesday, called for “intensifying efforts towards a long-term solution” for Afghans living in Pakistan.
In a statement after the visit, UNHCR expressed gratitude for the suspension of the “programme for the deportation of illegal aliens” and asked for assurances that it would continue.
VOA quoted a Pakistani government official as saying the deportations had been halted, but did not say for how long they would be suspended.
“Our message to Mr. Grandi is that the international community should assume responsibility for the lives and return of Afghan refugees. This is a shared responsibility and the entire burden should not be placed on Pakistan,” said the official quoted by VOA.
Pakistani and UN officials said the suspension of forced returns was done on “humanitarian grounds” due to the deteriorating economic and humanitarian situation in Afghanistan.
Pakistan began expelling illegal Afghan migrants in November last year. According to IOM statistics, Pakistan has expelled nearly 640,000 Afghans during this period. According to the Taliban-run Ministry of Refugees, nearly 1,000 Afghan migrants were expelled on Monday, July 8 alone.
During his visit, Grandi met with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and other senior officials and focused on the fate of around three million Afghans in Pakistan.
Of these, around 1.3 million are officially registered refugees, around 900,000 hold Afghan nationality cards, and the rest are undocumented or have expired visas after fleeing the Taliban’s occupation of Afghanistan in August 2021 and awaiting asylum in a third country.
High Commissioner Grandi’s visit highlights the challenges currently facing Afghan refugees and the urgent need for international cooperation to address their plight.
The moratorium on deportations provides a temporary reprieve, but it highlights the need for comprehensive, long-term solutions.
More than 600,000 Afghans fled to Pakistan after the collapse of Afghanistan’s previous government in August 2021, many of them fearing danger from the Taliban.
