UN Rapporteur Urges Pakistan to Halt Afghan Refugee Expulsions

UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan, Richard Bennett, has urged Pakistan to stop deporting Afghan refugees, warning that the policy violates international obligations and risks triggering a humanitarian crisis.

“Afghanistan is not safe for many of its citizens,” Bennett wrote on the social media platform X on Friday, August 29. “Continuing deportations is inconsistent with Pakistan’s international commitments.”

The UN envoy also called on the broader international community to step up support, urging countries to expand resettlement pathways and provide greater assistance to Pakistan and other neighbors hosting millions of Afghans.

Pakistani officials recently announced that, starting September 1, even refugees holding temporary registration cards will be subject to deportation—a move that has raised alarm among humanitarian organizations.

The UN refugee agency and other international bodies have repeatedly cautioned that large-scale expulsions could deepen Afghanistan’s humanitarian crisis, where conflict, poverty, and repression remain widespread.

Pakistan has hosted one of the world’s largest refugee populations for decades, but the government now cites mounting economic hardship and security concerns as justification for accelerating removals.

Analysts warn that without increased international support and an immediate halt to forced deportations, both Pakistan and Afghanistan risk greater instability—with potential ripple effects across the wider South Asian region.

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