‘Now they only deport’: Afghans trapped in Pakistan arrested and sent back after ‘open war’ breaks out
#Afghan refugees #Pakistan deportations #Taliban Afghanistan #Cross-border clashes #Journalists at risk #UN human rights #Open war declaration #Afghan exiles
📌 Key Takeaways
- Pakistan declares 'open war' with Afghanistan after cross-border clashes
- Afghan refugees face mass arrests and deportations across Pakistani cities
- Journalists and activists fear for safety if returned to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan
- Pakistani authorities implementing checkpoints and house-to-house searches
- UN warns of 'real risk of violent retaliatory attacks' for returning refugees
📖 Full Retelling
Thousands of Afghan journalists, activists and former government officials who fled Taliban rule are facing increased arrests and deportations by Pakistani authorities across major cities following escalating cross-border clashes that have prompted Islamabad to declare itself in 'open war' with Afghanistan in February 2025. The situation has created a humanitarian crisis as refugees who once found sanctuary in Pakistan now live in constant fear, with police conducting raids, setting up new checkpoints and conducting house-to-house searches targeting Afghan nationals. One Afghan journalist, Alma, described her ordeal as she attempted to flee with her family to a third country, only to be stopped at Karachi airport twice and later turned away from a hotel solely because of her Afghan passport. 'The officers told us to go back to Afghanistan and fly wherever we want to from there. They said we cannot fly to our destination from Pakistan,' she recounted. The heightened tensions stem from recent cross-border strikes between Pakistani forces and Tehreek-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants, which Islamabad claims are supported by the Taliban government in Kabul. In response to the deteriorating security situation, refugees across Pakistan have organized through social media groups to share information about police movements and safe areas, though many report feeling increasingly trapped with limited options for escape. The United Nations has warned that forced returns would place these individuals at 'real risk of violent retaliatory attacks' given their professional backgrounds and opposition to Taliban rule.
🏷️ Themes
Refugee Crisis, Cross-border Conflict, Human Rights, Press Freedom
📚 Related People & Topics
Afghan refugees
Nationals of Afghanistan who left their country as a result of major wars or persecution
Afghan refugees are citizens of Afghanistan who were forced to flee from their country as a result the continuous wars that the country has suffered since the Afghan-Soviet war, the Afghan civil war, the Afghanistan war (2001–2021) or either political or religious persecution. As of 2023, there were...
Afghanistan
Country in Central and South Asia
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the east and south, Iran to the west, Turkmenistan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, Tajikistan to the northeast, and China ...
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Original Source
‘Now they only deport’: Afghans trapped in Pakistan arrested and sent back after ‘open war’ breaks out Journalists and activists who fled Taliban rule are living in fear as Pakistani police hunt and deport refugees after escalating cross-border clashes A t midnight on Saturday, Alma* stood at the check-in counter at Karachi airport in Pakistan with her husband and three-year-old son, holding tickets she believed would finally take the refugee family to safety. The Afghan journalist, who fled the Taliban in October 2024, had already been stopped from boarding two days earlier, on 26 February. Since they were flying with a tourist visa to a country in Africa, they had booked a flight from Karachi with a return leg that they did not plan to use. But the Pakistani officials at the airport refused to let them board. This time, they had booked flights with a return leg to Kabul. But again, officials from Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency refused to let the family board. “The officers told us to go back to Afghanistan and fly wherever we want to from there. They said we cannot fly to our destination from Pakistan.” Within hours, she and her family would also be turned away from a hotel because of their Afghan passports. Alma’s ordeal is unfolding as Pakistan declares itself in “open war” with Afghanistan after escalating cross-border strikes last month on Tehreek-e Taliban Pakistan militants , also known as the Pakistan Taliban, which Islamabad accuses Kabul of supporting. Afghan refugees say the developments have triggered a sharp increase in police raids, arrests and deportations across major cities. For the millions of Afghans living in Pakistan – many of them journalists, activists or former government officials who fled Taliban rule – the rising tension is translating into fear at their doorsteps. Richard Bennett, UN special rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan, says returning to their country will put them at “real risk of violent retaliatory attacks”. Mon...
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