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Pakistan to continue supporting Afghanistan amid growing humanitarian crisis
Pakistan on Sunday said it will continue to support all efforts aimed at addressing the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan, and the issue of lasting peace and stability in the country.
In a statement issued by Pakistan’s Foreign Office, spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan thanked Jan Egeland, Secretary General of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), for drawing attention to the humanitarian predicament of Afghanistan.
Egeland earlier warned that the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan is being overlooked by the international community, with 22 million people in need of aid.
Speaking during a visit to Afghanistan, Egeland highlighted the dire situation faced by Afghan families, particularly women.
“Here in Herat, I met women who had been deported without their husbands back to deep poverty and hopelessness,” he said.
“Thank you @NRC_Egeland for drawing attention to the humanitarian predicament of Afghanistan. It would have been more appropriate had the world not abandoned the Afghan people after the war and if conducive socioeconomic conditions had been created inside the country for the Afghan people to prosper,” said FO spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan.
He said: “Pakistan has generously hosted over four million Afghan refugees. Those sent back were residing illegally without any documentation or proof of residence. Progress on the cases of thousands of Afghan nationals who were promised resettlement in western countries remains painfully slow.
UN Humanitarian aid to Afghanistan remains critically underfunded with only 37.5% of the required funds secured last year.”
He said Pakistan and Afghanistan were tied together by historical, religious and cultural links that transcend time.
“Pakistan has been and will continue to support all efforts aimed at addressing the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan as well as for lasting peace and stability in the country,” he added.
Egeland highlights dire situation of return refugees
Jan Egeland, Secretary General of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), on Monday highlighted the dire situation faced by Afghan refugees.
His warning came after his visit to the Islam Qala border crossing between Afghanistan and Iran.
Egeland revealed that significant numbers of Afghans are being expelled daily. “Iran wants to deport 2 million, and Pakistan has already sent back 800,000,” he stated.
These mass deportations come at a time when Afghanistan is grappling with severe humanitarian challenges, exacerbated by reduced international support.
According to Egeland, western donors have failed to uphold their commitments to Afghan girls and the broader population, slashing critical aid programs that were once lifelines for millions.
The Secretary General criticized the international community for neglecting its promises and leaving vulnerable Afghans to face worsening conditions.
The return of such large numbers of people is straining Afghanistan’s fragile infrastructure and economy, which remains in crisis following the IEA’s takeover in 2021.
NRC and other humanitarian organizations are calling for renewed international focus and resources to address the escalating needs of displaced Afghans and the communities struggling to absorb them.
As deportations continue and aid dwindles, the situation underscores a growing humanitarian crisis at Afghanistan’s borders, with countless families left to face an uncertain future.
Amid rising tensions over Pakistan’s repatriation plans for illegal Afghan nationals, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapour said on Friday that no refugees will be forcibly deported from the province.
“We will not allow any Afghan refugee to be expelled by force from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. We stand firmly against such inhumane deportations,” Gandapur said at a press conference.
The remarks came as the Pakistani government ramps up efforts to repatriate undocumented Afghan refugees and Afghan Citizen Card (ACC) holders, following the expiration of the voluntary return deadline on March 31, 2025.
“The past situation, where Afghan refugees, including women and children, were stranded at the border, tarnished Pakistan’s image,” Gandapur said, reaffirming the provincial government’s commitment to a dignified repatriation process.
“We are setting up camps for voluntary repatriation, and anyone wishing to return will be helped. However, we will not forcibly expel any Afghan refugee,” he stated.
Afghans holding Afghan Citizen Cards (ACC) — issued by Pakistan authorities and held by 800,000 people, according to the United Nations — face deportation to Afghanistan after the deadline.
More than 1.3 million Afghans who hold Proof of Registration (PoR) cards from the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, are also to be moved outside the capital Islamabad and neighbouring city Rawalpindi.
The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) has 46 township plans for returning refugees, Acting Minister of Refugees and Repatriation Mawlawi Abdul Kabir told a visiting Iranian diplomat in Kabul, calling on Tehran to give refugees time to return.
According to a statement issued by the ministry on Saturday, Abdul Kabir said during the meeting that Afghanistan and Iran are friendly neighbors that have many commonalities.
He stressed the need to further develop and strengthen relations between the two countries and said that the frequent visits of high-ranking Iranian officials show that Tehran wants positive and friendly relations with Afghanistan.
Abdul Kabir thanked Iran for its assistance and hosting of Afghan refugees, saying that Iran and Pakistan have been hosting Afghan refugees for the past few decades. He called for more leniency in the treatment of migrants.
He said that the Islamic Emirate is preparing a mechanism to provide legal documents for those migrants whose legal residence in Iran has expired.
In the meeting, Mohammad Reza Bahrami, Iran’s new Assistant Minister and Director General for South Asian Affairs at the Foreign Ministry, invited Abdul Kabir to visit Tehran, and called for repatriation plan to be shared before the trip.
He stressed on the humane treatment of Afghan refugees and appreciated the Islamic Emirate’s initiative to build 46 townships, calling it an important step forward for the return of refugees.
Bahrami noted that there are currently eight million Afghan reguees living in Iran, of whom four million are undocumented or have their residence expired.
The United States has no plans to allow for the reopening of its embassy in Kabul, American officials have said as reported by Washington Examiner on Friday.
“The United States does not recognize any entity as the government of Afghanistan and therefore has no plans to allow for the reopening of its embassy,” a State Department spokesperson said.
US National Security Council spokesman James Hewitt also said that the United States has “made no commitments regarding the Afghan Embassy in Washington, and there are no discussions underway” concerning the status of the US embassy in Kabul.
The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) called for the handover of Afghanistan’s embassy in Washington during US officials’ visit to Kabul recently for the release of an American prisoner.
The IEA also asked the United States to reopen its embassy in Kabul.
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