Pakistan’s Defense Minister: Time Has Come for Afghan Refugees to Leave Pakistan

Photo: REUTERS

Following rising tensions between the Taliban and Pakistan, Khawaja Muhammad Asif, Pakistan’s Defense Minister, has said that the current situation concerning Afghanistan shows that the time has come for Afghan refugees to leave Pakistan after five decades.

On Sunday night (October 12), Asif wrote in a post on the social media platform X: “Pakistan’s economy must be freed from their dominance. From bakeries to transportation, projects, and the trucking mafia, everything is under the control of Afghans. They are the backbone of our economy and should not remain in the hands of others.”

Asif further emphasized that the Pakistan-Afghanistan border should be controlled like the official borders of other countries and that no one should enter Pakistan without authorization. He added, “It cannot be that someone wakes up in the morning and crosses the border to come to Peshawar for breakfast.”

These remarks come a night after heavy clashes broke out between Taliban forces and the Pakistani army in border areas.

It is worth noting that since 2023, the Pakistani government has implemented a plan to “deport illegal foreign nationals,” a policy that includes not only undocumented refugees but also some holders of official registration cards (POR). This year, Islamabad has decided to expel more than 1.4 million registered refugees with POR cards as well.

Pakistani officials describe this move as part of the country’s national security, anti-smuggling, and border control policies. But, thousands of Afghan refugees, especially women and children, are now facing the imminent risk of arrest and deportation.

This deportation policy not only threatens the lives of ordinary refugees but also endangers hundreds of women activists, journalists, and human rights defenders who fled to Pakistan to escape Taliban persecution and are now once again facing the danger of arrest, deportation, and forced return.

International organizations, including the United Nations and Amnesty International, have condemned this policy as “inhumane,” warning that forced deportations could lead to a large-scale humanitarian crisis.