Pakistan expels 60,000 Afghan refugees since April, deportation surge reported

Pakistan has intensified a nationwide campaign to expel Afghan refugees, with nearly 60,000 reportedly forcibly deported since April and over 127,000 leaving since the latest crackdown began. Many Afghans are leaving under threat of arrest and deportation, with Pakistani authorities targeting both unregistered and, increasingly, registered refugees despite earlier reassurances. Human rights organizations have condemned the campaign, citing a lack of legal justification and warning that vulnerable groups such as women, girls, and former Afghan officials face significant risks upon return to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. Deportees have described harsh treatment by Pakistani police and loss of livelihoods, while some Afghan families are separated during the process. Pakistan plans to expel up to three million Afghans in the coming year, a policy that has drawn international criticism and raised concerns about the humanitarian consequences for returnees. The Afghan interim government, meanwhile, has called on refugees to return home and help rebuild the country.