Hundreds of thousands of Afghans residing in Pakistan are facing imminent deportation starting April 1. Many, like Mohammad Laal Khan, have lived in Pakistan for decades, forming communities and contributing to the fabric of society. Despite holding Afghan Citizenship Cards, they now face a systemic government crackdown that has already seen around 850,000 Afghans expelled since late 2023. This situation poses a dire challenge for families, many of whom have no ties or knowledge of Afghanistan, as they grapple with the real possibility of being uprooted from their lives in Pakistan.
"It is as if being an Afghan is a curse upon our existence," Khan, 36, told Al Jazeera on a recent March afternoon in the same room where dozens of police officers had stormed in, threatening to take away all the men.
"We don't know anything about Afghanistan. We have lived here all our lives, made friends here, built our businesses here. If the government insists on deportation, it will destroy everything we have built."
Collection
[
|
...
]