24-Hour Deadline Issued to Evacuate Ghamangol Camp in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
The local administration of Kohat in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province has begun the process of evacuating the “Ghamangol” camp, giving Afghan refugees residing there only 24 hours to demolish their shelters and leave the area. Local authorities have warned that failure to comply will result in forced eviction using coercive measures.
According to a local reporter, this move follows recent pressures on Afghan refugees across Pakistan. Families have been ordered to personally destroy their homes within the stipulated deadline. This decision has raised serious concerns among the camp’s residents.
One elder of the refugees in Ghamangol said the camp was established in 1978 and 1979 and once housed about 50,000 refugees. He added that due to recent pressures, nearly 10,000 have returned to Afghanistan, but approximately 40,000 still remain in this mountainous area in difficult conditions.
According to this source, many families wish to return to their country, but closed routes and lack of readiness have left them worried. Refugees fear that if they move towards the Torkham border crossing and find it closed, their women and children could be left without shelter under the open sky during the rainy season. In recent weeks, reports indicate an increase in the forced eviction of Afghan refugees from various parts of Pakistan, with hundreds of families being expelled daily—a situation that has sparked widespread humanitarian concerns.
