Emergency in Imran Khan's bastion, fresh fears for Afghan returnees in Pakistan
Afghan nationals recently deported from Pakistan have reported a rise in arbitrary detentions, midnight raids on homes and financial extortion in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, following the military-backed Shehbaz Sharif government's imposition of governor’s rule and a state of emergency in the province, as news agency ANI cited TOLO News report.Returnees said daily life had become increasingly difficult, with Pakistani police frequently searching their homes and restricting their freedom of movement. Several deportees alleged that they were being detained on flimsy pretexts and that law enforcement personnel were demanding bribes in exchange for their release.Mohammad Rahman, an Afghan returnee, told TOLO News that his family had moved from Punjab to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan's tenure in search of better living conditions.However, he said the situation had deteriorated sharply after Islamabad declared an emergency and imposed governor's rule, leaving refugees afraid to step outside for fear of arbitrary arrest and extortion.Another deportee, Sohail Khan, said authorities were conducting raids on residential properties at night while targeting and intimidating refugees in local markets during the day to extract money. Displaced families also recounted being picked up from their workplaces and subjected to humiliating treatment before being deported.
The reported crackdown comes as nearly 27,000 Afghan refugees have returned to Afghanistan through the Torkham border terminal over the past three months. Officials at the Omari Temporary Settlement near Torkham said administrative arrangements, including 12 dedicated support committees, remain in place to provide essential assistance and manage a possible increase in arrivals.Meanwhile, efforts to resettle returning Afghans are continuing.
The Taliban-led ministry of urban development and housing said more than 74,000 residential plots had been distributed to returning families across 22 provinces.The ministry added that land had been allocated across 27 dedicated townships, with 37 master development plans formally approved to support the reintegration of returnees.The Munir-Sharif duo imposed a state of emergency and governor’s rule in Pakistan’s northwestern province, a stronghold of jailed former PM Imran Khan’s party, PTI.