PESHAWAR: The police and district administration have launched an operation against Afghan nationals still residing in different parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa after the expiry of the deadline for their stay in Pakistan.
All refugee camps have been closed and the occupants asked to return to native country as the deadline has already expired.The deputy commissioners and district police chiefs have been directed to take action against Afghan nationals living in rented houses, apartments and shops.
They were also instructed to check whether such individuals were residing in properties rented out by locals on their own CNICs.Tens of thousands of Afghan families have returned to Afghanistan over the past several months.
Authorities had been advising Afghan families in Pakistan to pack up and leave before the deadline. They were facilitated in Peshawar and Khyber districts to ensure their repatriation with dignity.
Police officials made announcements in mosques, urging Afghan families to return to their native country since their Proof of Registration (PoR) cards expired on June 30.A significant number of Afghans, however, have yet to wind up their businesses in Pakistan despite the expiry of the repatriation deadline.
The government had also asked all Afghan refugees, including those possessing PoR cards and other documents, to return to their country by August 30 as all such cards had expired.Earlier, March 31 had been set as the deadline for all undocumented Afghans as well as those holding ACC cards to return to Afghanistan.Before that, October 2023 was declared the deadline for the repatriation of all unregistered Afghans, after which hundreds of thousands returned to their homeland.
