Nearly 12,000 refugees return from Iran, Pakistan

KABUL (Pajhwok): More than 11,800 Afghan refugees were forcibly repatriated from neighboring Pakistan and Iran in a single day, an official said on Sunday.

Hamdullah Fitrat, deputy spokesman for the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA), shared the report from the High Commission for Addressing Migrants’ Issues on his X, showing that 2,102 families, comprising 11,855 individuals, returned to Afghanistan on Saturday.

The returnees entered the country through the Islam Qala crossing in Herat, Pul-i-Abresham in Nimroz, Spin Boldak in Kandahar, Bahramcha in Helmand and the Torkham crossing in Nangarhar.

Fitrat added that 2,287 returnee families (13,246 individuals) were transported to their respective home areas, while 1,760 received humanitarian assistance.

About 1,060 SIM cards of telecommunication networks were also distributed to the returnees.

Earlier, a total of 4,268 Afghan refugees had returned to the country after being forcibly repatriated from Iran and Pakistan.

hz/sa