INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Pakistans State Minister for Interior Affairs Talal Chaudhry has confirmed that Pakistan has set a June 30 deadline for registered Afghan
nationals, including Proof of Registration (PoR) holders, to voluntarily return to Afghanistan.
After this, he said that formal deportation
Afghan refugees were and remain our guests
They are being sent back with full dignity and respect, he told Geo News.
Pakistan is currently deporting illegal immigrants and Afghan
Citizen Card holders, with thousands returning to their country daily.
Meanwhile, UNHCRs spokesperson Qaisar Khan Afridi stressed that
deportations must be voluntary, not forced.
Afridi also highlighted that the UNHCR has received complaints of arrests in parts of Punjab,
even involving some documented Afghan refugees.
However, Chaudhry categorically denied such incidents, stating that no such case has been
officially reported and that previous allegations turned out to be fake news upon verification.
He clarified that Afghan refugees who fail
to leave within the stated deadlines are not immediately deported, but are first notified, and then taken to refugee holding centres where
they are provided food, shelter, security, medical aid and travel facility.
This is a structured, humane process
Our hospitality has always been there for Afghan citizens, Chaudhry emphasised.
The post Registered Afghan refugees must return by June 30
or face deportation: Pakistani official first appeared on TINS News.
