News Desk
Islamabad: The Federal Cabinet on Wednesday authorised a one-year extension for officially recognised Afghan refugees who are now lawfully resident in Pakistan.
“The federal cabinet approved a one-year extension of the validity of PoR (Proof of Registration) cards of 1.45 million Afghan refugees,”
reads a statement released today. The expiration date of their PoR cards is June 30, 2024.
The deadline for the extension is June 30, 2025.An essential identifying document maintained by registered Afghan refugees is the Proof of Registration (PoR).
According to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), over 800,000 people have Afghan citizenship cards in addition to being registered.
Citing security concerns, the caretaker administration of last year announced in October the repatriation of Afghan refugees who had been living in the nation unlawfully.
Since November 1, more than 500,000 illegal Afghan refugees have been repatriated to their country of origin, according to figures from the Interior Ministry.
Many nations, including the US, UK, Afghanistan, and others, criticised Pakistan; however, Pakistan refuted all of the claims, claiming that the only people being deported were illegal Afghan immigrants in order to reduce the country’s rising crime rate.
The federal cabinet’s decision was made one day after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and UN Refugee Agency Chief Filippo Grandi met in Islamabad.
According to a UN High Commission for Refugees release, Grandi thanked the UN for suspending the “Illegal Foreigners Repatriation Plan” and asked for guarantees that it would stay postponed.
Pakistan demands that the Afghan government put a halt to cross-border attacks on its territory.
Grandi urged Islamabad to uphold its “proud tradition” of hospitality towards Afghans who continue to require international protection as he concluded a three-day visit to Pakistan on Tuesday.
Grandi demanded the “timely” extension of Proof of Registration cards—a vital identifying document possessed by more than 1.3 million Afghan refugees—during his talks, the statement continued.
