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Afghans Re-enter Pakistan Amid Harsh Realities at Home
Deported Afghans return to Pakistan, citing Taliban restrictions & poverty. “Going back was like sentencing my family to death,” says one. Many now settle in Peshawar, where police pressure is less.
ND
by News Desk
2025-06-19
Afghans Re-enter Pakistan Amid Harsh Realities at Home

Peshawar – In the shadow of Pakistan’s renewed deportation campaign, thousands of Afghans have found themselves caught in a cruel cycle—forced to return to a homeland they barely recognize or fear, only to risk their lives and savings to return to Pakistan, a country where they face uncertainty, but also a sliver of hope.

One such story is of Hayatullah, a 46-year-old father of three, deported in early 2024 via the Torkham border in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. "Going back there would be sentencing my family to death,” he told AFP, describing Afghanistan as a place where “life had come to a standstill.”

Risking It All to Return

After arriving in Afghanistan with little but heartbreak and belongings strapped to trucks, Hayatullah paid a bribe to cross the Chaman border back into Pakistan—like many day laborers who quietly flow between the borders seeking survival.

His daughters, 16 and 18, who would be barred from education in Taliban-ruled Afghanistan, managed to stay behind in Pakistan. Now reunited in Peshawar, the family finds some comfort in relative safety. “Compared to Islamabad, the police here don’t harass us as much,” he said.

Another Forced Stranger in the Homeland

Samad Khan, 38, was born in Lahore. He had never even seen Afghanistan until he was deported in April 2024. “There’s no work, no relatives, and no future there,” he said. After weeks of struggling for income in a collapsing economy where 85% survive on less than a dollar a day, he paid Rs50,000 to sneak back through Chaman using someone else’s ID.

He quickly returned to Lahore, gathered his wife and two children, and relocated to Peshawar. With the help of a friend, he now runs a second-hand shoe business. “The police in Lahore treated us like criminals. It’s better here,” he added.

A Bleak Loop of Migration

Pakistan claims hundreds of thousands of Afghans have resettled in KP after deportation—but these figures cannot be independently confirmed. The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) confirmed to AFP that some deported Afghans have chosen to return to Pakistan.

“When individuals return to areas with limited access to basic services and livelihood opportunities, reintegration can be challenging,” said Avand Azeez Agha, IOM’s communications officer in Kabul.

With no education, healthcare, or security—especially for women and girls—many Afghans see no choice but to risk re-entry into Pakistan, even illegally.

Human Rights Concerns

Rights groups have urged both the Pakistani government and international bodies to reconsider harsh deportation strategies, calling them a violation of refugee protections.

Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have repeatedly warned that forced returns to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan may amount to refoulement, a breach of international law when people are returned to places where their lives or freedoms are at risk.

What Lies Ahead?

As the Taliban tighten their grip and Pakistan pushes forward with its deportation drive, thousands like Hayatullah and Samad Khan remain in limbo—struggling to find dignity and survival in a world that keeps shutting the door.
Tagged:

Pakistan

afghanrefugees

MigrationCrisis
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