• Deported includes 191 men, 37 women and 79 children.
• Memon says that only those who are illegal stay are deported.
• Promises to continue the campaign against undocumented migrants.

Karachi: At least 307 illegal Afghan immigrants have been deported from Sindh in so far as part of the government’s policy to deport all undocumented foreign nationals, Sindh -Information Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon said on Sunday.

In a statement, Memon said the illegal immigrants were repatriated from Amin House Transit Camp after thorough verification, litigation and background checks. He said they deported included 191 men, 37 women and 79 children.

The federal government announced at the beginning of March that 800,000 Afghan Citizen Card (ACC) would be canceled – the second phase of a deportation program that has already forced 800,000 undocumented Afghans across the border.

The country has hosted millions of Afghans for about five decades. Hundreds of thousands of them returned to their country in the last few years, but still live over 2.1 million in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and other provinces.

Pakistan had set on March 31 as the deadline for all the illegal Afghans as well as those who had ACC cards to return to their country in the midst of rising incidents of terrorism in the country.

Last year, it was the deadliest year in nearly a decade in Pakistan, with more than 1,600 people lost their lives in attack-close half of them Security forces staff-awake the Islamabad-based Center for Research and Security Studies.

Pakistan accuses the Taliban government of failing to eradicate militants who shelter on Afghan Earth, a charge that the Taliban government denies.

The Taliban government has repeatedly called for the “worthy” return of Afghans to their country, with Prime Minister Hassan Akhund, who encourages countries that host Afghans not to force them out.

On February 13, the Minister of the Interior Sindh asked the government to initiate the repatriation of all ACC holders to their country of origin under the illegal foreigners’ repatriation plan (IFRP). As part of the plan, voluntary returns until March 31 ended and “forced repatriation” from April 1 has begun.

Memon said in the statement today that an initial list of 313 individuals had been assembled and after a screening process, 307 was found entitled to deportation. He noted that only those who are illegally resident in the country are deported.

The Minister confirmed the government’s obligation to continue the campaign against undocumented migrants in accordance with international laws and protocols.

“Pakistan repatriates illegal immigrants in accordance with global principles,” he said, adding that the Sindh government’s operation will remain in progress.

Number of Afghan refugees in Pakistan

According to data obtained by Pakinomist NewsThere are currently 2.1 million registered and unregistered Afghan refugees in Pakistan.

Sources in the Ministry of States and Border Areas (Safron) say that 1.4 million Afghan refugees are legally registered, while 800,000 Afghan citizens have an ‘Afghan citizen card’ (ACC), but their stay is now considered illegal.

However, the government claims that the total number of Afghan refugees in Pakistan is three million, all of which are set to be repatriated this year under the deportation plan of the illegal foreign national.

Four categories

Afghan citizens residing in Pakistan for decades fall into four categories.

The first category consists of Afghan citizens who fled to Pakistan due to instability in Afghanistan and gained official refugee status. In 2007, Pakistan issued proof of registration card (por) to these refugees, which now make up about 1.3 million. The government issued these cards only once and renewed them regularly with the current validity that expires on June 30, 2025.

The second category includes Afghan citizens who were issued Afghan Citizen Card (ACC). About 800,000 people received these cards in 2016, and they are now being repatriated as part of the government’s deportation efforts.

The third category includes Afghan citizens who fled to Pakistan after the Taliban acquisition in 2021. These persons were awarded asylum under international protocols. While the Pakistani government initially claimed that 600,000 Afghans arrived after the US withdrawal, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) states that only 200,000 were officially registered.

The fourth category includes undocumented Afghan citizens who lack both pore and ACC status and are not registered as asylum seekers from the 2021 influx. This category also includes those who have married in Pakistan and obtained false national identity cards. Over the past two years, the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) has canceled such fake IDs through its national verification and renewal drive, which now classifies these individuals as illegal residents.