Over 482,000 immigrants, including 876 Afghan Citizen Cardholders, repatriated as of April 5, say officials.
PESHAWAR
Voluntary repatriation of the Afghan refugees continues as 39 Afghan Citizen Card (ACC) holders have left for Afghanistan on Sunday, officials said.
“These individuals, primarily immigrants from Islamabad and other areas, were previously taken into custody by local police”, said officials.
According to the data released by the Department of Home and Tribal Affairs KP, as of April 5, a total of 876 Afghan citizen cardholders and 481,285 other immigrants have been sent to Afghanistan from the Torkham border.
As part of the repatriation process for Afghan citizen cardholders and illegal immigrants residing across the country, holding camps have been set up in Landi Kotal. One such camp has also been established at the Hamza Baba shrine in Khyber.
It is important to note that until March 31, 2025, the repatriation of Afghan citizen cardholders and illegal immigrants from across the country was voluntary.
However, after this date, Afghan citizen card holders and illegal immigrants will be registered in a holding camp before being sent to Afghanistan through Torkham. All necessary arrangements for this process have already been completed.
In response to the repatriation efforts, a group of UN experts recently urged Pakistan to reconsider its plan to forcibly expel Afghan refugees from the federal capital, Islamabad, and Rawalpindi. The experts have called for these refugees not to be forced to return to Afghanistan.
