22 Afghan refugees returning from Pakistan killed in Nangarhar road crash

KABUL: At least 22 people were killed and 36 injured when a truck carrying Afghan refugees returning from Pakistan plunged into a ravine in eastern Afghanistan’s Laghman province on Saturday, officials said.

The vehicle lost control and fell into a deep gorge along a major highway linking Kabul and the eastern province of Nangarhar, the spokesman for the provincial governor Abdul Malik Niazi said.

He said those killed included 10 children and five women, while the injured were shifted to hospitals in different districts of Nangarhar.

The head of the provincial health department, Aminullah Sharif, confirmed the casualty figures, saying initial findings suggested the driver had fallen asleep at the wheel, leading to the crash.

The passengers were part of a larger group of Afghan refugees who have returned from Pakistan recently amid a crackdown on undocumented migrants.

Pakistan launched a campaign against illegal foreigners in 2023, prompting a large number of Afghan nationals to leave the country or be repatriated. Iran has also stepped up deportations of Afghan refugees during the same period.

In a separate incident, a vehicle skidded off a road and fell into a river in eastern Nuristan province late on Friday, leaving the driver injured and four passengers missing, provincial officials said.

Rescue teams were continuing search operations for the missing persons.