Islamabad: Authorities in the federal capital have detained at least 190 Afghan refugees as part of an ongoing crackdown, according to a civil society group on Thursday.
In a series of posts on X (formerly Twitter), the Joint Action Committee for Refugees (JAC) reported that a large-scale operation was underway in Islamabad and Rawalpindi, resulting in the arrest of numerous Afghan nationals. The group alleged that the crackdown was indiscriminate, affecting individuals regardless of their legal status, including those holding Proof of Registration (PoR), Afghan Citizen Cards (ACC), or valid visas.
"JAC has learned that several Afghan refugees have been detained in different police stations without due legal process. Currently, approximately 190 Afghans are being held at the Haji Camp detention center in Islamabad," the group stated, calling the action a violation of a recent ruling by the Islamabad High Court (IHC).
Earlier this week, IHC Justice Inam Minhas issued an order restraining authorities from harassing Afghan refugees and emphasized the need for legal procedures to be followed. The ruling stated that individuals holding Pakistan Origin Cards should not be forcibly evicted from their residences before June 30, 2025, as per a government notification issued in July 2024.
The crackdown comes after a series of high-level meetings led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, in which officials were instructed to relocate registered Afghan refugees from the twin cities and facilitate their gradual repatriation.
Police official claimed that the force was not directly involved in the crackdown but was only deployed outside the Haji Camp detention center. The official explained that the district administration was responsible for rounding up undocumented migrants, who were then transported to the border for deportation.
A female Afghan refugee revealed that authorities have been carrying out daily raids to detain refugees in Islamabad and Rawalpindi. She recounted her own experience, stating that she was briefly held at Haji Camp but released after proving her legal residency status.
According to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), which monitors Afghan repatriation, over 18,000 Afghan refugees left the twin cities in January 2024 alone. The overall number of returnees this year has reached approximately 315,100, with the majority being undocumented Afghans (257,447), followed by PoR holders (42,929) and ACC holders (5,770).
