Return of Migrants Through Four Borders Intensifies Livelihood Pressure in Afghanistan

The return of groups of Afghan migrants from neighbouring countries continues, as the trend adds to Afghanistan’s crisis of livelihoods, housing and employment. The Taliban administration said hundreds of families entered Afghanistan through border crossings yesterday.

Hamdullah Fitrat, deputy spokesman for the Taliban administration, said in a statement on Saturday, 31 Asad, that 220 families comprising 1,052 people had returned to Afghanistan. However, the same statement said that 140 families, including 2,694 people, entered the country through the Torkham crossing alone.

According to the Taliban administration, 29 families returned through the Spin Boldak border in Kandahar province, 13 families through the Islam Qala border in Herat province, and 38 families also returned to Afghanistan through the border in Nimroz province. The released details show that the largest number of returnees entered through Torkham.

The forced return of Afghan migrants in recent months has repeatedly raised concerns about the country’s ability to absorb these families inside Afghanistan. Torkham, Spin Boldak, Islam Qala and Nimroz are among Afghanistan’s most important border crossings for travel and the return of migrants.