Pakistan sets deadline for Western nations to relocate Afghan allies

Islamabad — 

Pakistan has decided to deport thousands of Afghan nationals if Western countries, including the United States, bash not relocate them arsenic promised for resettlement overseas by the extremity of March, officials confirmed Monday.

The individuals successful question took refuge successful Pakistan aft the Taliban regained power of Afghanistan successful 2021, chiefly seeking structure from imaginable retribution owed to their affiliations with the U.S. and NATO forces.

Pakistani overseas ministry spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan precocious reported that “almost 80,000” Afghans person truthful acold been “taken by assorted countries for resettlement, and astir 40,000 are inactive successful Pakistan.” They reportedly see an estimated 15,000 Afghans to beryllium approved for resettlement successful the U.S.

Last week, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif led a gathering successful Islamabad to sermon the presumption of astir 3 cardinal Afghan refugees residing successful the country, including documented and undocumented refugees, economical migrants, and those who are awaiting resettlement to a 3rd country.

A post-meeting papers seen by VOA connected Monday outlines a multi-stage repatriation plan, requiring authorities to determination “Afghan nationals bound for 3rd state resettlement” retired of the Pakistani superior and adjacent garrison metropolis of Rawalpindi by March 31, 2025. It did not elaborate.

Sharif directed the overseas ministry “to guarantee coordination with overseas [diplomatic] missions for their relocation, including to their intended destinations, failing which they volition besides beryllium repatriated to Afghanistan.”

The U.S. and allied troops withdrew from Afghanistan conscionable days aft the Taliban swept backmost to powerfulness successful Kabul three-and-a-half years ago. The withdrawal ended a astir two-decade-long U.S. engagement successful the Afghan war, with conjugation forces besides evacuating tens of thousands of Afghan allies with a pledge to resettle them abroad. Many of them were airlifted and transported to Pakistan temporarily.

Last month, caller President Donald Trump’s medication announced the suspension of the U.S. Refugee Admission Program, saying the intermission was intended to measure whether reinstating the programme serves the interests of Washington. The announcement further analyzable the Afghans' already dilatory and analyzable relocation process.

Under the Pakistani plan, Sharif has besides directed authorities to instantly relocate each ineligible Afghan migrants, including those without residential permits, from Islamabad and Rawalpindi and repatriate them to Afghanistan. Although circumstantial figures were not provided, authoritative estimates bespeak that the fig of migrants with ineligible presumption successful Pakistan exceeds 800,000 holding the Afghan Citizen Card, oregon ACC.

The authoritative papers outlining the deportation stages emphasized that nary nationalist announcement should beryllium made regarding the planned deportations of Afghans, and it “shall beryllium ensured that they bash not instrumentality erstwhile repatriated.”

Pakistani authorities person already forced much than 800,000 undocumented Afghans retired of the state since launching an authoritative crackdown connected overseas immigrants lacking documents oregon visas successful precocious 2023.

Pakistan is location to much than 1 cardinal Afghans recognized by the United Nations arsenic lawfully registered refugees, holding a Proof of Registration, oregon POR, card. The Sharif authorities has granted POR cardholders support to stay successful Pakistan until June 30, 2025. These families chiefly dwell of those who escaped decades of war, persecution, and the erstwhile Islamist Taliban authorities successful Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001.

The bulk of the lawful refugees are either calved oregon raised successful Pakistan and are hesitant to instrumentality to a state that feels unfamiliar to them, according to officials from the U.N. exile agency.

Moreover, the U.N. says that years of conflicts, earthy disasters, and deepening economical troubles aft the Taliban takeover person worsened a long-running humanitarian situation successful poverty-stricken Afghanistan. Aid agencies estimation that much than fractional of the Afghan colonisation necessitate immoderate assistance, which is simply a important origin successful discouraging refugees from returning home.

The Taliban’s sweeping restrictions connected Afghan women’s entree to employment, education, and nationalist beingness astatine large, successful enactment with their strict mentation of Islamic law, person besides deterred exile families from leaving Pakistan.