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Over 250,000 Afghan refugees return home from Pakistan and Iran in April
Many refugees who have returned from Pakistan have had to leave mostly everything behind, including houses, businesses and possessions.
More than 250,000 Afghan refugees returned home from neighboring Pakistan and Iran in April, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported late Sunday.
“Among them are women and girls, who face an uncertain future with restrictions on education, jobs and freedom of movement. Any returns must be voluntary, safe and dignified,” the UNHCR said in a post on X.
Nearly seven million Afghan refugees are living outside the country – a large percentage of whom live in Pakistan and Iran.
Last year, the Pakistani government said it would expel as many as three million Afghans this year. Iran have also called on undocumented Afghans living in the country to return home.
However, with the high levels of poverty and unemployment in Afghanistan, the returning refugees are in urgent need of assistance.
Many refugees who have returned from Pakistan have had to leave mostly everything behind, including houses, businesses and possessions.
Transit camps have been set up at the border crossings to accommodate the return refugees, and international organizations, along with the Islamic Emirate, have been striving to ease the return of the refugees as much as possible.
However, funding cuts in humanitarian assistance has had a huge impact on the level of assistance that organizations can provide.
Urgent funding appeal
Last week, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) warned that an even deeper humanitarian crisis is looming in Afghanistan as tens of thousands of Afghan refugees return from neighbouring countries.
UNHCR spokesperson Babar Baloch said that the agency urgently needs $71 million to assist those arriving home. Baloch said these refugees face desperate conditions once in the country.
In April, more than 251,000 Afghans returned in adverse circumstances from Iran and Pakistan, including over 96,000 who were deported, Baloch said.
He said the UNHCR continues to advocate with the governments of Iran and Pakistan that returns to Afghanistan must be voluntary, safe and dignified. “Forcing or putting pressure on Afghans to return is unsustainable and could destabilize the region,” he said.
“While UNHCR recognizes the many challenges – including economic pressures – facing these countries that have hosted millions of Afghans for decades, we have also consistently shared our concerns that regardless of their legal status, people forced to return to Afghanistan may encounter serious protection risks,” Baloch said.
Since 2023, more than 3.4 million Afghans have returned or been deported from Iran and Pakistan, including over 1.5 million in 2024 alone.
The UNHCR said such mass returns have strained the capacity of many provinces in Afghanistan and exacerbated the risk of further internal displacement.
The organization also warned that there has been new displacement into Iran and Pakistan, and heightened risks of onward movements towards Europe.
In 2024, Afghans became the largest group (41 percent) of irregular arrivals from the Asia-Pacific region into Europe.
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IEA should respond to Pakistan’s security concerns with concrete actions: Andrabi
Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokesman Tahir Hussain Andrabi says both Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Sadyr Japarov, the President of Kyrgyzstan, who visited Islamabad on Thursday, expressed their mutual commitment to a peaceful, stable Afghanistan with a sustainable future for the Afghan people.
Speaking in a press conference on Friday, Andrabi stated that both sides agreed that the Islamic Emirate must fulfill its obligations toward the international community and take concrete steps against terrorist groups to address Pakistan’s legitimate security concerns.
This comes while the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has repeatedly emphasized that no terrorist groups operate from Afghan territory and that it will not allow anyone to use Afghan soil against any country.
The Islamic Emirate has also stated that Pakistan’s security concerns are an internal issue of that country, and Pakistan itself must take measures to prevent any security incidents.
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Malaysia’s PM calls peaceful solution to Afghanistan-Pakistan tensions
Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has voiced deep concern over escalating tensions between the Afghanistan–Pakistan during a telephone conversation with Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
In a statement posted on Facebook, Anwar said he emphasized Malaysia’s concerns regarding regional stability and urged all parties to pursue a peaceful resolution through dialogue and diplomatic engagement to prevent further escalation.
His remarks follow media reports indicating heightened tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan after a series of attacks in October.
During the call, the two leaders also exchanged views on several aspects of Malaysia–Pakistan bilateral relations.
Anwar also briefed Sharif on the ongoing flood situation in Malaysia and similar challenges facing neighboring countries, including Indonesia and Thailand.
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Afghanistan makes major strides in cutting drug trafficking, says Putin
Putin stated that Afghan authorities have “substantially reduced” opium cultivation and are “seriously confronting” drug-related threats from within their borders.
Russian President Vladimir Putin says Afghanistan has taken “active and effective” steps to curb drug trafficking, noting a significant drop in opium production across the country. He made the remarks during an exclusive interview with India Today during his India trip, highlighting what he described as “visible progress” in Afghanistan’s internal security efforts.
Putin stated that Afghan authorities have “substantially reduced” opium cultivation and are “seriously confronting” drug-related threats from within their borders. He added that Afghanistan has also made important advancements in the fight against terrorism.
Responding to a question about why Russia officially recognized the Islamic Emirate, the Russian president said Afghanistan had been engulfed in civil conflict for many years, but the current authorities now hold control over the country. “This is the reality, and it must be acknowledged,” Putin emphasized.
He further noted that maintaining contact with Afghanistan’s leadership is crucial for shaping events inside the country. “If you want influence, you must engage with the people in charge — and that is exactly what we are doing,” he said.
Putin’s remarks come as several regional powers continue to recalibrate their diplomatic strategies toward Afghanistan, focusing on stability, counterterrorism, and economic cooperation.
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