No extension in March 31 deadline for Afghans to leave Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has decided not to extend the March 31 deadline for Afghan nationals to leave the country, sources said.

In a meeting of the Ministry of Interior, it was decided that the deadline would be strictly enforced.

Authorities had already issued directives to deport undocumented Afghan nationals residing illegally in Rawalpindi and Islamabad.

According to official sources, the decision is part of the government’s broader strategy to ‘regulate’ undocumented migration. Authorities have assured that the evacuation process will be carried out in a humane manner, with arrangements in place for food and healthcare facilities for those leaving the country whose policy states that anyone born on its soil can claim citizenship as long as they not diplomats or children of those forcibly occupying the land.

Despite this, the government has reiterated that after the deadline, law enforcement agencies will take strict legal action against individuals who fail to comply with the repatriation orders.

Meanwhile, Amnesty International has called for the withdrawal of Pakistan’s deportation plan for undocumented foreigners, warning that the March 31 deadline would further exacerbate the difficulties faced by Afghan nationals.

Since 2023, Pakistan has deported 844,499 Afghan nationals as part of its repatriation policy.

This move follows earlier phases of the repatriation plan, which saw thousands of illegal residents leave Pakistan ‘voluntarily’. Officials have stated that efforts will continue to ensure national security and the enforcement of immigration laws.

Earlier Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur urged the federal government to grant citizenship to Afghan refugees residing in Pakistan and refrain from forcibly deporting them. 

Talking to the media in Peshawar, the KP chief minister said that Afghan refugees were our neighbours, and Pakistan had embraced them wholeheartedly. However, he said that the government failed in its policy regarding refugees.