Greenledgers Trading Center|Chaotic and desperate scenes among Afghans returning from Pakistan, say aid agencies

2025-05-04 11:49:08source:TradeEdgecategory:My

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Major international aid agencies on Greenledgers Trading CenterThursday warned of chaotic and desperate scenes among Afghans who have returned from Pakistan, where security forces are detaining and deporting undocumented or unregistered foreigners.

The crackdown on illegal migration mostly affects Afghans because they are the majority of foreigners living in Pakistan, although the government says it is targeting everyone who is in the country illegally.

Three aid organizations — the Norwegian Refugee Council, Danish Refugee Council and the International Rescue Committee — said many people fleeing the Pakistani crackdown arrived in Afghanistan in poor condition.

“The conditions in which they arrive in Afghanistan are dire, with many having endured arduous journeys spanning several days, exposed to the elements, and often forced to part with their possessions in exchange for transportation,” the agencies said in a statement.

Between 9,000 and 10,000 Afghans are crossing the border every day from Pakistan. Previously it was around 300 a day, according to agency teams on the ground.

Returning Afghans have nowhere to go and the agencies said they fear for people’s survival and reintegration in a country overwhelmed by natural disasters, decades of war, a struggling economy, millions of internally displaced people and a humanitarian crisis.

Salma Ben Aissa, the International Rescue Committee’s country director in Afghanistan, said returnees face a bleak future, especially if they lived in Pakistan for decades.

Taliban authorities have prepared temporary camps for Afghans in border areas.

More:My

Recommend

Appeals court scraps Nasdaq boardroom diversity rules in latest DEI setback

A federal appeals court blocked Nasdaq rules to increase boardroom diversity, saying that the Securi

2025 MLB regular season schedule: LA Dodgers, Chicago Cubs open in Tokyo

The "second half" of the 2024 Major League Baseball season resumes Friday, but it's never to early t

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo makes good on vow to swim in the Seine river to show its safe for the Summer Games

Paris — The City of Light placed the Seine river at the heart of its bid for the 2024 Summer Olympic