We are not expelling any outcasts. Just the individuals who are unlawful will leave Pakistan," says Sarfraz Bugti
Tuesday, October 31, 2023
The deadline set for voluntary return expires tomorrow, Bugti says.
He says "our lengthy and gradual operation" will begin from November 2.
"Government to provide food and medical facilities in detention centers".
As the clock ticked down to the "aliens" deadline, acting interior minister Sarfraz Bugti announced on Tuesday that the government would begin a crackdown on undocumented immigrants, including hundreds of thousands of Afghan nationals, from Thursday (November 2).
"There are only two days left for voluntary return," Bugti said in the video, adding that the November 1 deadline for voluntary return would expire on Wednesday.
From November 2, he said, "Our lengthy and gradual operation will begin," ensuring that "we are not deporting any refugees. Only those who are completely illegal will leave Pakistan."
Pakistan is home to more than 4 million Afghan migrants and refugees, about 1.7 million of them undocumented, according to the interior ministry, including many who were born in Pakistan and have lived there all their lives.
Islamabad announced earlier this month that it wanted all undocumented immigrants to leave by November 1.
Islamabad said it took the decision after Afghan nationals were found to be involved in crimes, smuggling and 14 suicide bombings out of 24 this year, saying militants are using Afghan soil to train fighters and plan attacks inside Pakistan.
The expulsion plan marks a new low in already strained relations between the South Asian neighbors.
Bugti said those who leave voluntarily will be assisted by the government in temporary centers set up to accommodate immigrants.
"We will try to provide them with food and medical facilities for two to three days in the detention centers," said the Minister of the Interior.
The immigrants, mostly Afghans, many of whom have lived in Pakistan for years, will be processed at the centers.
Hundreds of thousands of Afghans have moved to Pakistan to escape war and conflict, and many are registered as refugees with the government and UN agencies.
Pakistan says it has received the largest influx of Afghan refugees since the Soviet invasion of Kabul in 1979.
