Nearly 1,700 Afghan refugee families return in one day

A general view of the city of Kabul, Afghanistan August 5, 2022
Reuters

Afghanistan recorded the return of 6,202 refugees from Iran and Pakistan on Friday, officials confirmed.

According to Afghanistan's High Commission for Addressing Returnees Problems, 1,693 refugee families crossed back into the country on Friday, using multiple border points including Islam Qala in Herat, Torkham in Nangarhar, Spin Boldak in Kandahar, and Abrisham in Nimroz.

The commission did not specify the reasons behind this particular wave of returns, though both Iran and Pakistan have recently stepped up deportations of undocumented Afghans.

In early August, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) reported that more than 2 million Afghans, including 500,000 children, have returned from Iran, Pakistan, and other countries so far this year.

The Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation said in July that around 6 million Afghan nationals remain abroad, the majority of them undocumented and residing in Iran and Pakistan.

UN agencies have repeatedly called for better protections and reintegration assistance for the returnees, citing risks of poverty, unemployment, and lack of access to education and healthcare.

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