Russian, UAE presidents to discuss bilateral agenda, Middle East situation on Thursday
United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan will begin an official visit to Russia on Thursday to meet with President Vladimir ...
Pakistan has begun expelling documented Afghan refugees weeks before its 1 September deadline, the UN refugee agency says, warning that the early removals breach international law and could uproot more than one million people.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said on Wednesday it had received “credible reports” of arrests and deportations of legally registered Afghans since 1 August and urged Islamabad to “stop the forcible return and adopt a humane approach to ensure voluntary, gradual and dignified repatriation.”
UNHCR spokesman Qaisar Khan Afridi told Reuters that “hundreds” of refugees holding valid papers were detained and sent back to Afghanistan between 1 and 4 August, despite a government order stating that formal expulsions would begin only after next month’s deadline.
About 1.3 million Afghans hold Proof of Registration cards and a further 750,000 possess Afghan Citizen Cards, according to Pakistani officials. Many families have lived in Pakistan since the Soviet–Afghan war of the 1980s.
An interior-ministry directive seen by Reuters says “voluntary return” of documented refugees should start immediately, with mass deportations to follow if they remain after 1 September. The ministry did not respond to requests for comment on UNHCR’s allegations.
The removals are part of the Illegal Foreigners Repatriation Plan launched in late 2023. Islamabad blames Afghan nationals for militant attacks and crime; Kabul rejects the charge and brands the policy forced deportation. Aid agencies warn that sudden, large-scale returns could deepen instability in Afghanistan, which also faces new mass expulsions from neighbouring Iran.
The world’s biggest dance music festival faces an unexpected setback as a fire destroys its main stage, prompting a last-minute response from organisers determined to keep the party alive in Boom, Belgium.
According to the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ), a magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck the Oaxaca region of Mexico on Saturday.
Australian researchers have created a groundbreaking “biological AI” platform that could revolutionise drug discovery by rapidly evolving molecules within mammalian cells.
China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations will send an upgraded ‘version 3.0’ free-trade agreement to their heads of government for approval in October, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Saturday after regional talks in Kuala Lumpur.
A series of earthquakes have struck Guatemala on Tuesday afternoon, leading authorities to advise residents to evacuate from buildings as a precaution against possible aftershocks.
Most peace talks fail. Some drag on for years. Others collapse in days. But even when they don’t succeed, they can save lives. From backchannel meetings to battlefield truces, here’s how peace talks actually work — and why making peace is often harder than making war.
United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan will begin an official visit to Russia on Thursday to meet with President Vladimir Putin.
Afghanistan is stepping up efforts to become a key transit hub between Central and South Asia, as new infrastructure projects with Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan move forward.
Around 25 miles (40 km) from the advancing Russian frontline, a Ukrainian Catholic community in the eastern city of Zaporizhzhia is offering spiritual and material support to people fleeing occupied territories.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment