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Pakistan uncovers fake visa network in Islamabad involving Afghan nationals
According to the FIA, almost 700 Afghans obtained fraudulent visas and identities through the network.
Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has dismantled a sophisticated visa fraud operation based in Islamabad, uncovering a network that enabled hundreds of Afghan nationals to secure forged Pakistani documents and foreign work permits.
According to an FIA statement, the Counter-Terrorism Wing arrested three individuals—Muhammad Alam Zeb, Asif Khan, and Haroon Rashid—who played key roles in issuing nearly 100 fraudulent Saudi Arabian work visas to Afghan citizens using fake Pakistani passports, machine-readable Nigerian passports, and forged National Identity Cards (CNICs).
Alam Zeb alone allegedly facilitated 31 visas, Asif Khan issued four, and Rashid processed 58, the FIA.
During coordinated raids, two additional suspects—Muhammad Ishaq Khan and Syed Ehsan Shah—were apprehended, reportedly connected to issuing visas and identification for 693 Afghan nationals between them.
Shah allegedly assisted 580 Afghans, and Ishaq Khan arranged documents for 22 others.
The scope of the investigation is expanding, with authorities probing the involvement of officials at the FIA Immigration and Passport Office and NADRA.
Scale of the Scam
According to the FIA, almost 700 Afghans obtained fraudulent visas and identities through the network.
However, the FIA is scrutinizing potential collusion by government employees in the passport and identity authorities.
The fake visas were primarily used for employment in Saudi Arabia, highlighting the transnational dimension of the racket.
This operation meanwhile forms part of wider FIA efforts to curb visa fraud, human smuggling, and related crimes.
In a separate operation in December, the FIA Immigration Unit intercepted individuals, including Afghan nationals, attempting to board flights with counterfeit visas—such as a Poland-bound flight using forged documents—resulting in arrests and referrals to the Anti-Human Trafficking Circle.
In earlier operations this year, the FIA arrested two agents in Peshawar for sending Afghans to Italy on fake Pakistani passports, seizing 15 passports and mobile phones, and uncovering human smuggling routes to Europe.
Additionally, investigations in Lahore led to the booking of 10 FIA officials and six travel agents for aiding 41 Afghans carrying counterfeit passports to Saudi Arabia.
The dismantling of this scam highlights vulnerabilities within Pakistan’s visa-issuance and identity system.
The FIA has pledged to intensify scrutiny of government employees in passport and registration departments. It also warned the public, urging travelers and employers to verify visa authenticity through official channels.
“This is not merely a scam—it puts national security and the credibility of Pakistan’s immigration infrastructure at risk,” the FIA stated. The investigation continues, with further arrests and legal proceedings anticipated.
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Afghanistan says Pakistani military post destroyed near Spin Boldak
Afghanistan’s Ministry of Defense says a Pakistani military post near Spin Boldak was targeted and destroyed after Pakistani forces opened fire toward Afghanistan.
Ministry spokesperson Enayatullah Khwarazmi said in a post on X that Afghan forces suffered no casualties or damage in the clash.
Khwarazmi also rejected claims made by the Pakistani side about the incident, describing them as “propaganda.”
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Mujahid: Pakistan attacking Afghanistan to evade Mecca Pact responsibilities
He warned that the Islamic Emirate would give an “appropriate response” to what he called the Pakistani military regime’s “bullying.”
Islamic Emirate spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid has accused Pakistan of carrying out attacks on Afghanistan to divert attention from its domestic problems and to evade responsibilities under the “Mecca Pact.”
Speaking at a religious seminary in Kandahar, Mujahid said Pakistan was facing political and economic challenges at home and was using attacks on Afghanistan to shift public attention away from protests and its internal problems.
“Pakistan, by violating the territory of its neighboring Islamic country, wants to divert attention from its failures,” he said.
Mujahid also criticized Pakistan’s political situation, claiming that political space had been restricted and that freedoms guaranteed under the country’s laws were not being allowed.
He said Pakistan’s economic problems had also increased significantly and accused the country of seeking to distract the public from those problems by engaging in conflict with Afghanistan.
Mujahid further accused Pakistan’s military leadership of putting the Pakistani people at risk through what he described as its “false position.”
He warned that the Islamic Emirate would give an “appropriate response” to what he called the Pakistani military regime’s “bullying.”
His remarks followed Pakistani airstrikes on Kandahar, Paktia and Khost provinces on Thursday, which Afghan authorities said killed four civilians.
The strikes came three days after attacks on Kunar and Paktika provinces, in which Afghan authorities said three civilians were killed.
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Kabul rejects U.S. claim that meth seized in Pakistan was of Afghan origin
Balkhi said the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) has imposed an absolute ban on the production, trafficking and use of all types of narcotics in Afghanistan.
Afghanistan’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Abdul Qahar Balkhi has rejected a U.S. claim that 463 kilograms of synthetic drugs seized in Pakistan were of Afghan origin, calling the attribution “unfounded and politically motivated.”
Balkhi said the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad should investigate the origin of the seized drugs in Pakistan rather than attributing them to Afghanistan.
“The attribution by the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad of the synthetic drugs bound for Sri Lanka and intercepted in Pakistan through joint U.S.-Pakistani efforts as ‘Afghan-origin’ is an unfounded and politically motivated allegation,” Balkhi said.
He said the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) has imposed an absolute ban on the production, trafficking and use of all types of narcotics in Afghanistan.
Balkhi also claimed that following the ban in Afghanistan, the cultivation, production and trafficking of narcotics have increased “on the other side of the Durand Line.”
He further argued that Afghanistan does not have the capacity to produce synthetic drugs and said crossing points along the Durand Line have been completely closed to all movement for nearly a year.
His remarks came after the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad said U.S. and Pakistani anti-narcotics authorities had seized 463 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine worth an estimated $21 million and bound for Sri Lanka.
The embassy said the operation led to multiple arrests and highlighted ongoing U.S. cooperation and training with Pakistani authorities to disrupt international drug-trafficking networks.
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