Posted on 23 November 2023
There were significant concerns as Pakistan announced in early October that all Afghan migrants residing in the nation, almost 1.73 million people, would be forced to leave by November 1.
As of 18 November, almost 375,000 refugees had returned back home to Afghanistan in the preceding two months, and numbers of daily returnees had increased from 200 a day to 17,000 a day by early November.
The International Organization for Migration’s (IOM) Afghanistan Chief of Mission Maria Moita expresses deep concern for the situation, saying that the refugees are “desperate”.
“People arriving in Afghanistan are extremely vulnerable and need immediate support at the border as well as for the long term in the areas of return”, she says. “This is a significant humanitarian crisis and funds are urgently needed to continue providing immediate assistance after arrival to ensure a safe and dignified return.”