Afghanistan Times
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AT Monitoring Desk-KABUL: Since Afghan refugees in Pakistan were harassed and also illegal put behind bars, some 70,000 registered Afghan refugees were voluntary repatriated to Afghanistan from northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province during current year, the United Nations said on Tuesday.
According to the Voluntary Repatriation Centers of United Nation High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) around 5,000 Afghans from Balochistan had returned to Afghanistan in August.
“1,800 Afghans were repatriated from Sindh, 12,200 from Punjab, 1,500 from Islamabad and 230 from Azad Kashmir,” a Pakistani media quoted UNHCR spokeswoman, Dunya Aslam Khan, as saying.
“The increase in the number of security operations against undocumented foreigners has also impacted refugees’ decision-making,” he added.
The process of their return is going smoothly after increase in cash grant from $200 to $400 per person.
UNHCR’s mandate in Pakistan only covers registered Afghan refugees with valid Proof of Registration (PoR) cards.
Repatriations are on course this year to reach their highest level since 2008, with the UNHCR saying 103,013 refugees have returned to Afghanistan from Pakistan, 93 percent within the last two months.
