Pakistani police detained scores of Afghan nationals on Friday night in the ‘Barakahu’ locality in the capital Islamabad, according to official sources.
According to local sources, police has detained more than 20 Afghan refugees from the Barakahu neighborhood in Islamabad and taken them to an unknown location.
It is also stated that refugees’ mobile phones and laptops have been confiscated. However, neither the government of Pakistan nor the Embassy of Afghanistan in Islamabad has commented on the detentions.
Following the brutal terror attack at a mosque in Peshawar which claimed the lives of hundreds of people, the Pakistan government decided to take serious actions against growing militancy and the resurgence of terrorism in the country.
As part of the wide range of initiatives to combat growing militancy, the Pakistani police has commenced a unique “search operation” across the country. They incarcerate undocumented foreign nationals including Afghans who are illegally residing in Pakistan.
Police conducted a similar search operation in Rawalpindi on Thursday night. They randomly entered into the houses of Afghan nationals, and asked for legal documents including visas, and stay permits.
“A few police officers entered my flat Thursday night, checked our official documents, and left our place without even bothering us, or conducting any major investigation,” said an Afghan citizen in Rawalpindi.
The incarceration of Afghan nationals by Pakistani police continues across the country. Over the past months, they have put undocumented Afghan citizens including women and children behind bars in Sindh province and deported hundred more to Afghanistan.
Since the return of the Taliban to power in August 2021, thousands of Afghans have migrated to Pakistan mostly fearing persecution and death threats from the country’s ruling regime. A large majority of these people have entered Pakistan without visas through the Spinboldak crossing point, now facing serious problems in the host country.
Meanwhile, the Pakistani government has taken very serious actions to deal with undocumented foreign nationals including Afghans.
