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UN experts urge Pakistan to halt Afghan refugee deportations
The deportations fall under Pakistan’s “Illegal Foreigners Repatriation Plan” and now extend to Afghans holding Proof of Registration (PoR) cards.
United Nations human rights experts have urged Pakistan to suspend its planned deportation of Afghan refugees, scheduled to begin on September 1, 2025, warning that the policy violates international law and places returnees at grave risk.
The deportations fall under Pakistan’s “Illegal Foreigners Repatriation Plan” and now extend to Afghans holding Proof of Registration (PoR) cards. Many of these refugees have lived in Pakistan for decades, with some born in the country.
The experts described the move as a clear breach of the principle of non-refoulement, which prohibits returning people to territories where they could face persecution, torture, or other serious harm. “Non-refoulement is not optional,” the UN experts said in a joint statement.
Citing UNHCR’s 2023 Guidance Note on the International Protection Needs of People Fleeing Afghanistan, the experts stressed that forced returns remain unsafe given the humanitarian and human rights situation.
Afghanistan is still facing mass displacement, with more than three million people uprooted. Women and girls are particularly vulnerable due to sweeping restrictions, including bans on secondary education, curbs on employment, and limitations on movement without a male guardian.
While acknowledging Pakistan’s decades-long role in hosting millions of Afghan refugees, the experts called for increased international assistance to ease the burden.
Rights groups have raised alarm over the policy’s implementation.
Amnesty International documented more than 750,000 forced deportations from Pakistan by March 2025, citing racial profiling, arbitrary arrests, and harassment of refugees.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Monday that security risks in Central Asia and developments in Afghanistan are among the primary concerns for the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO).
The CSTO is a regional military alliance that includes Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan.
Speaking in Moscow during a meeting with CSTO Secretary-General Taalatbek Masadykov, Lavrov described the region’s security challenges as “central” to the organization’s agenda.
“The problems that are currently among the central ones for the CSTO are new challenges and threats. I am referring to the situation in the Central Asian region of collective security, as well as everything related to what is happening in Afghanistan,” he said.
He praised Masadykov as “one of the leading experts” on Central Asian security, noting that his experience could enhance coordination and increase the effectiveness of allied actions.
Similar to NATO, the CSTO considers an attack on one member state as an attack on all.
Countries in the region have always expressed concern about security threats from Afghanistan. The Islamic Emirate, however, has dismissed these concerns and assured that it will not allow Afghanistan’s soil to be used against another country.
The Ministry of Higher Education of Afghanistan has announced that the leader of the Islamic Emirate has approved the establishment of a faculty dedicated to “Prophetic Medicine.”
According to the ministry, this new faculty will play a vital role in advancing medical sciences and training skilled healthcare professionals across the country.
Afghanistan’s Minister of Borders and Tribal Affairs, Noorullah Noori, has announced that the long-delayed demarcation and renovation of border markers along the Afghanistan–Iran frontier will officially begin in the near future.
According to a statement from the ministry, Noori made the remarks during a meeting with Iran’s ambassador to Kabul, Ali-Reza Bikdeli.
He assured the Iranian side that the Islamic Emirate is fully committed to accelerating the process and resolving any challenges that may arise during implementation.
In a separate statement, the Iranian Embassy in Kabul said Bikdeli underscored the importance of bilateral cooperation on border issues, describing it as a key factor in strengthening and expanding overall relations between the two countries.
Officials from both sides agreed nearly three months ago to resume the border-marker renovation project, which had remained stalled for the past seven years.
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