Taliban Announces Inauguration of Kazakhstan’s Chamber of Commerce in Herat

Previously, the Pakistani police had been instructed to start the second phase of deportation of Afghan migrants.

However, according to an official letter from the Ministry of States and Frontier Regions of Pakistan on Monday, migrants with UNHCR registration cards will be allowed to stay in Pakistan for less than two additional months.

The Ministry of Refugees and Repatriations of Taliban reported on Monday that 913 individuals had been forcibly expelled from Pakistan.

According to reports from Pakistani media, since the approval of the bill to deport Afghan migrants in November last year, roughly half a million migrants have been repatriated to Afghanistan.

In the upcoming second phase of deportations, Pakistani media estimate that nearly one million Afghan migrants will be expelled from Pakistan.

UNHCR statistics indicate that approximately 2.18 million Afghan migrants reside in Pakistan, including 1.3 million registered refugees holding UNHCR cards.

Furthermore, an additional 880,000 refugees obtained temporary residence permits after registering in 2017.

The refugees say that their asylum pleas have been disregarded for years.

They have warned that their protests will persist until they receive a response from the organisation.

The refugees accuse the Indonesian police of resorting to violent measures against protesters. They allege that following their demonstrations, the local police have detained an Afghan woman.

The protesters called for attention to their immigration cases and for relocation and resettlement to other countries. According to official figures, nearly 12,000 refugees reside in Indonesia, with the majority being Afghan nationals.

Over the past year, Afghan protesters in Indonesia have staged multiple demonstrations in front of the United Nations office, yet their cases remain unaddressed.

The ministry's announcement on Monday detailed that the returnees included 308 families, as reported by border officials at Islam Qala.

However, the specifics of how many migrants returned forcibly versus voluntarily had not been disclosed.

Included among the returnees were 21 orphaned children, who have been identified and referred to the International Organisation for Migration for further assistance and family tracing efforts.

In a related statement, Iran’s Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi declared that Iran expelled 1.3 million "illegal" migrants last year and emphasised that Iran is not accepting new citizens, insisting that all "unauthorised" nationals must exit the country.

Two of the individuals received 30 lashes each, while a third was sentenced to 20 lashes, although the specifics of the offences were not disclosed.

This decision was handed down on Monday by the primary court in the Ahmad Aba district of Paktia province.

In addition to corporal punishment, the court also imposed prison sentences, with two of the accused receiving one year each, and the third person being sentenced to eighteen months.

Critics have consistently argued that since their return to power, the Taliban have leveraged accusations such as these to suppress dissent, leading to arrests and trials on a range of charges.

In a similar vein last month, the Taliban court in Kandahar sentenced three individuals to extended prison terms and lashes for their involvement in political activities, illustrating the ongoing use of severe measures, including public lashings, as punishment across Afghanistan.

During a speech to his party supporters in Karachi on Sunday, Rehman contested statements by Pakistan's Chief of Army Staff regarding the border's security with Afghanistan.

He referenced a discussion with General Qamar Javed Bajwa, who claimed that extensive measures, including the installation of barbed wire costing billions of rupees, had been implemented to prevent crossings to and from Afghanistan.

Rehman questioned the effectiveness of these measures. He asked how 20 to 30 thousand armed Pakistani youths participated in the Taliban's conflict against American forces, if the borders had been sealed?

The cleric further scrutinised the alleged border security measures and expenditures made by the Pakistani military, raising concerns about the return of these youths to Pakistan, purportedly more empowered.

Highlighting potential security lapses, Rehman challenged the Pakistani military's oversight, "While you were stationed along the border, how did such a large number of armed men cross it?"

He commented on the credibility of Pakistan's military might and resources, suggesting they are unreliable.

To date, neither the Pakistani military leadership nor the Taliban have responded to Rehman's allegations.

Previously, Pakistani government leaders accused the Taliban of permitting Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants to operate from Afghan soil, alleging that TTP members have launched attacks into Pakistani cities from Afghanistan.

The Taliban have refuted these accusations, labelling the TTP threats as a domestic Pakistani issue.