Kabul, Dec 26: Over 3,500 Afghan refugees have been repatriated from Iran and Pakistan in a single day, a Taliban official said on Thursday.
Sharing a report from the High Commission for Addressing Migrants’ Issues on X, Taliban deputy spokesperson Mullah Hamdullah Fitrat stated that 745 families — comprising 3,513 individuals — returned to Afghanistan on Wednesday, Pajhwok Afghan News reported.
Afghan returnees travelled to Afghanistan through several border crossings, including Islam Qala in Herat, Pul-i-Abresham in Nimroz, Spin Boldak in Kandahar, Bahramcha in Helmand and Torkham in Nangarhar.
Fitrat stated that 627 families, including 3,487 individuals, were taken to their respective regions, while 660 families were provided humanitarian assistance upon arrival. Additionally, telecommunication firms provided 714 SIM cards to the returning refugees.
He revealed that 3,610 Afghan refugees were deported from Iran and Pakistan on Tuesday.
Earlier in November, several Afghan refugees in Pakistan said that they had been overwhelmed by continuous pressure from the country’s police, which, apart from conducting searches, was arresting people and exploiting their vulnerable situation as a source of income.
A report in an Afghan newspaper, ‘8 AM Media’, also known as Hasht-e-Subh Daily, highlighted that Afghan refugees in Pakistan do not have basic human rights and live in constant fear and anxiety.
Human rights groups and refugee-support groups have remained silent regarding the uncertainty and the government’s failure to fulfil its commitment to human rights and the protection of refugees.
Over the past few months, as tensions between the Taliban and Pakistan continue, Islamabad has increased its pressure on Afghan refugees, with the Pakistani forces conducting widespread harassment of migrants each day in various areas, including Islamabad.
Apart from official operations involving the arrest of Afghan refugees without visas, people in plain clothes extort money from migrants in residential areas. Afghan people have said that they live in inhumane conditions filled with fear and anxiety, and their refugee rights are not respected.