Pakistan arrests over 100,000 Afghans as returns surge, UNHCR data shows

Islamabad [Pakistan], November 16 (ANI): Chagai and Quetta in Balochistan and Attock in Punjab were the top three districts across the country where most Afghan Citizen Card ACC holders or undocumented Afghan nationals were arrested or detained over more than ten months this year, Dawn reported, citing a United Nations refugee agency assessment.
The report stated that the highest number of arrests or detentions occurred in 2025, with 100,971 Afghans arrested from January 1 to November 8, 2025, compared to 9,006 Afghans detained in 2024 and 26,299 Afghans arrested in 2023.
According to the UNHCR report, released on Friday, before 2023, there was no data collected on the arrest and detention of ACC holders or undocumented Afghan nationals. Since January 2023, the International Organisation for Migration IOM has been collecting such data.
From November 2 to November 8, a total of 13,380 Afghan nationals were arrested and detained, marking a 72 per cent increase from the previous week.
The report said ACC holders and undocumented Afghans represented 76 per cent of arrests and detentions, while Proof of Registration PoR holders represented 24 per cent.
During the same period, 41 per cent of all arrests and detentions were reported in Balochistan and 43 per cent in Punjab, Dawn noted.
Key findings of the UNHCR report stated that, cumulatively, from September 15, 2023, to November 8, 2025, 1,723,481 individuals had returned to Afghanistan.
Between November 2 and November 8, 55,768 Afghans returned through the Torkham, Ghulam Khan, Chaman, Badini and Bahramcha border crossing points.
Between November 2 and November 8, returns and deportations rose by 49 per cent and 75 per cent, respectively, compared to October 26 to November 1, when 37,448 returns, including 7,733 deportations, were documented.
The increase in returns was attributed to the reopening of the Torkham border on November 1, which allowed more Afghan nationals to cross. However, overall return numbers remained moderate compared to peaks in late August and September, according to Dawn.
During the same period, PoR holders represented 48 per cent of returnees, followed by undocumented Afghans at 43 per cent and ACC holders at nine per cent.
Most PoR returns were facilitated by UNHCR through Voluntary Repatriation Centres VRCs.
For deportations from November 2 to November 8, undocumented Afghans represented 84 per cent, followed by PoR holders at 13 per cent and ACC holders at three per cent.
Since April 1, 2025, 869,448 Afghan nationals returned to Afghanistan, of which 115,159 or 13 per cent were deported.
Fear of arrest remained the main reason for return among undocumented individuals and ACC holders at 93 per cent, and PoR holders at 47 per cent.
During the same period, returnees most commonly departed from Quetta at 20 per cent, Attock at 13 per cent, and Islamabad at nine per cent, and intended to travel to Kunduz at 19 per cent, Nangarhar at 18 per cent, and Kabul at 17 per cent, Dawn reported.
The report said the Pakistan government issued multiple directives in 2025 affecting Afghan nationals.
In January, Afghan nationals were instructed to relocate from Islamabad Capital Territory ICT and Rawalpindi or face deportation.
In April, authorities announced implementation of the second phase of the "IFRP", targeting ACC holders and undocumented Afghans.
In July, a Statutory Regulation Order SRO directed the repatriation or deportation of PoR card holders after card validity expired on June 30. The government later set September 1 as the deadline for PoR holders to leave Pakistan.
Police operations continued in Balochistan, where 434 Afghan nationals were taken into custody in Nokundi, officials said.
Acting on a tip-off, law enforcement raided a residence in Killi Burhanabad, Nokundi, where Afghan nationals were allegedly hiding.
The house owner Sarfaraz of the Burhanzai tribe, along with three unidentified suspects, fled, but police detained around 200 Afghans and registered a First Information Report.
In a subsequent operation, police raided the residences of Khaleel Ahmed and Attaullah, sons of Sher Ali, and detained at least 234 Afghan nationals.
All detainees were later transferred to the Girdi Jungle Refugee Camp for deportation proceedings under police supervision. (ANI)