Pakistani police detained 121 Afghan nationals during an enforcement operation in Lahore on 18 July, as part of an intensifying nationwide crackdown on undocumented migrants that has seen hundreds of thousands of Afghans detained and deported since late 2023. Of those held, 28 were subsequently released after presenting valid residency documents, while the remaining 93 were transferred to a holding centre in the city.

What Triggered the Latest Sweep

The Lahore operation followed the expiry of a government-set deadline for undocumented Afghans to voluntarily return home. Pakistani authorities have since escalated enforcement across all major provinces and territories, including Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, Gilgit-Baltistan, and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

Notably, Afghan migrants in Pakistan have reported that authorities are now detaining not only those without papers but also individuals whose visas or Afghan Citizen Cards (ACC) have expired — a significant expansion of the campaign's scope.

Scale of the Broader Deportation Campaign

The Taliban administration in Kabul reported that 3,753 Afghans returned through multiple border crossings on a single Friday, though it did not specify how many were forcibly deported versus those who returned voluntarily or arrived from other neighbouring countries.

Pakistan's crackdown, launched in late 2023, has resulted in the detention and deportation of hundreds of thousands of Afghans — one of the largest forced-return operations in the region in recent years.

Humanitarian Alarm Raised by UN and Rights Bodies

The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and multiple United Nations agencies have warned that the continued large-scale return of Afghans is placing severe additional pressure on humanitarian services inside Afghanistan, where millions already face food insecurity, unemployment, and severely limited access to healthcare and basic public services.

The UN and international human rights organisations have formally urged Pakistan to halt forced deportations, cautioning that many returnees could face persecution, arbitrary detention, torture, or reprisals upon arrival in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan.

Voices From the Ground

An Afghan journalist based in Pakistan underscored the particular vulnerability of those who fled after the Taliban reclaimed power in 2021. 'Those who sought refuge in Pakistan after 2021 are refugees, not ordinary migrants,' she said. 'Returning them to Afghanistan could cost them their lives.'

Her remarks reflect a broader concern among rights advocates that Pakistan's enforcement operation is conflating economic migrants with individuals who face genuine protection needs under international refugee law.

What Comes Next

With Pakistan showing no signs of halting the campaign and the Taliban administration absorbing thousands of returnees weekly, humanitarian agencies warn that Afghanistan's already strained social infrastructure faces a compounding crisis. International pressure on Islamabad to distinguish between refugees and undocumented migrants is expected to intensify in the weeks ahead.