Pakistan Expels 4,037 Afghan Migrants in One Day Amid Escalating Tensions
The Taliban’s Supreme Commission for Refugee Affairs has announced that Pakistan expelled 4,037 Afghan citizens in a single day. According to the commission, this action took place two days after the expiration of a deadline set by Pakistan’s Interior Ministry for illegal residents to leave the country.
As per a prior announcement by Pakistan’s Interior Ministry, starting from Friday, July 10, all Afghan citizens without valid visas or legal residence permits will be detained and subsequently deported. This decision is part of a broader effort Islamabad has undertaken in recent months to intensify the return of migrants.
On Monday, July 12, the commission stated in a press release that those expelled were returned to Afghanistan through the border crossings of Torkham in Nangarhar province and Spin Boldak in Kandahar province. Additionally, 63 people were also deported from Iran.
Relations between Pakistan and the Taliban administration have been tense over the past year, coinciding with an increase in the expulsion of Afghan migrants. Taliban officials have repeatedly claimed that Pakistan is using the migrant issue as political leverage. However, critics argue that the Taliban have not implemented a clear or effective plan to manage the large wave of returnees, which has exacerbated internal challenges.
These widespread expulsions from neighboring countries continue amid Afghanistan’s ongoing economic crisis and lack of job opportunities. The International Organization for Migration (IOM), in its report “Review of the Resilience of Afghan Returnees,” stated that from mid-September 2023 to May 30, 2026, approximately 6.04 million Afghan citizens have returned from Pakistan and Iran. The organization warned that the speed and scale of this return wave are increasing pressure on housing, public services, livelihood opportunities, and social cohesion, severely challenging the capacity of host communities.
According to statistics from the United Nations Refugee Agency, nearly three million Afghan migrants have been returned to the country since the beginning of 2025. Meanwhile, some Afghan refugees in Pakistan say that with the intensification of expulsions, their lives have become marked by fear and uncertainty, and they are concerned that their personal safety is not guaranteed if forcibly returned to Afghanistan.
