Report in TOLOnews Online, Nov 23, 2023 at 9:09 PM
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees called on Pakistan to stop the deportation of Afghan refugees, saying they face harsh winter conditions and an existing humanitarian crisis.
“UNHCR is calling upon the government of Pakistan to halt these mass numbers of returns during this harsh season of winter because the cold in Afghanistan is really deadly and it can take lives,” the agency’s regional spokesman, Babar Baloch, said as quoted by Reuters TV in an interview.
Meanwhile, Leila Jane Nasif, Senior Protection Cluster Advisor, in a video said that Afghanistan faces many serious protection challenges.
“A huge influx of Afghans forced them to leave Pakistan in recent weeks. These emergencies come as winter arrives which can be especially harsh in Afghanistan,” she said.
Meanwhile, the Minister for Information and Public Relations of the government of Balochistan, Pakistan, Jan Achakzai, spoke of the deportation of Afghan refugees, saying that all police have been instructed to arrest illegal refugees and deport them to their countries.
“All government departments are involved in this action. All departments, particularly the police, have been instructed to send back the illegal refugees to their countries after they were arrested,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Afghans who were deported from Pakistan, said that they are facing an uncertain future.
“We came back with nothing but bare feet. Everyone [refugee] was destroyed,” said Marriam, a deportee.
“We were forced to return in a bid to save our dignity,” said Jamiat Khan, a deportee.
Earlier, Farhan Haq, deputy spokesperson for the Secretary-General, said that the number of returnees from Pakistan has dramatically increased from 200 daily to 17,000, and he urged the international community to increase its support for Afghans.
https://tolonews.com/afghanistan-186174
