UN says around 7,000 Afghans returning home daily

PESHAWAR: Over 75,000 refugees have returned from different parts of Pakistan to Afghanistan during the current month, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

The UNHCR Afghanistan said on Wednesday that an average of 7,000 Afghan nationals are returning to their native country daily.It added that over 320,000 Afghan nationals have returned from Pakistan to their homeland since August.

The UNHCR is providing shelter and emergency cash assistance to those returning home. “With winter setting in, resources are running thin and more support is needed,” the UN body appealed for international assistance.Pakistan had set August 30 as the deadline for Afghan nationals to return to their country voluntarily.

The deadline applied to all categories of Afghans, including those holding Proof of Registration (PoR) cards and Afghan Citizen Cards.Only those possessing valid travel documents and visas were allowed to stay beyond the deadline.

Despite the expiry of the deadline, strict action has not yet been taken against Afghan nationals in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where a large majority of them have been settled for over four decades.

After assuming power, Chief Minister Muhammad Sohail Afridi stated that no Afghan would be forced to return home, and those wishing to go back voluntarily would be facilitated.There are also thousands of Afghans who have obtained Pakistani visas, while others have applied for them to continue their businesses and manage their assets.

Meanwhile, different departments have launched investigations against thousands of individuals who reportedly possess Pakistani Computerised National Identity Cards but are believed to be Afghan nationals.Four people were arrested by the Federal Investigation Agency the other day for assisting in the preparation of fake Pakistani documents for Afghans.