Stranded Afghans allowed entry into Afghanistan

LANDIKOTAL: Thousands of Afghan citizens stranded at the Torkham border for the last one week were allowed entry into Afghanistan on showing national identity cards (Tazkira), sources said on Monday.

Official sources said that the Afghan embassy in Pakistan had requested the Pakistani authorities to allow the stranded Afghan citizens in their thousands to return to Afghanistan. A large number of Afghan citizens, including women and children, had been waiting at the Torkham border for the last one week to return home.

Most of the Afghan citizens were residing in Pakistan but wanted to celebrate Eid with their near and dears ones in Afghanistan. Nisar Ahmad Zaland and Baryalay Hasrat, residents of Nangarhar, told The News that some of their family members were living in Pakistan while most of their relatives lived in Afghanistan’s eastern Jalalabad city.

They said they were working in Peshawar and wanted to celebrate Eid with their parents, brothers and sisters in Nangarhar.

The Afghan nationals said they had been waiting at the Torkham border along with women and children for the last five days. “We slept on the roadside on the hot summer days while fasting,” Nisar Ahmad Zaland said.

He thanked Pakistan and its people for providing them food at Iftar. He said some local residents from the Shinwari tribe give them food at Iftar. Officials said around 3000 people crossed the Torkham border on the first day.

They said Afghans could avail this opportunity till April 29. The Afghan citizens residing in Pakistan were allowed to go back to their country as a goodwill gesture, an official said.

Special representative for Afghanistan Mohammad Sadiq in his social media message asked Afghans in Pakistan that Tazkira (Afghan national identity card) holders would be allowed to leave for Afghanistan via Torkham border crossing till 29th April 2022.