Taliban Authority Reports Return of 6.8 Million Afghans Amid Rising Internal Displacement

The Taliban’s Ministry of Refugees and Repatriations has announced that since the group’s return to power, a total of 6.8 million Afghan citizens have returned to Afghanistan either voluntarily or forcibly from neighboring countries and beyond.

Mawlavi Abdul Kabir, the acting head of the ministry, made these remarks during a joint working group meeting focused on finalizing the draft of the “Permanent Solution Plan for Afghanistan’s Migration.” According to him, these returns include migrants who left the country over the past years for various reasons.

At the same time, the Taliban’s Ministry of Refugees reported that approximately 1.3 million citizens have been internally displaced due to natural events during the same period. These displacements have added new pressures on the humanitarian situation in vulnerable provinces.

However, critics argue that the Taliban administration has yet to present a clear and practical plan for sustainable settlement, access to basic services, and livelihood opportunities for returnees and internally displaced persons. This lack of a comprehensive strategy has heightened concerns over the ongoing migration crisis and the increasing vulnerability of families in Afghanistan.