Norwegian refugee council warns of the consequences of mass deportation of Afghan migrants from neighboring countries

Jumhuri Mudara: The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) has stated that millions of Afghan citizens are at risk of forced deportation from Afghanistan’s neighboring countries.

On Wednesday, January 22, the NRC issued a statement warning that afghan migrants are living in desperate conditions and that returning them to Afghanistan would mean facing challenges such as unemployment, hunger, and human right violations.

The NRC’s statement noted that after decades of war, economic collapse, and climate crises, Afghanistan is still unprepared to accommodate the millions of people who may soon face deportation from neighboring countries.

Iran and Pakistan have intensified the deportations of Afghan migrants, with hundreds of Afghan asylum seekers being forcibly expelled from these two countries daily.

Reports indicates that the Pakistan government has recently detained nearly 1000 Afghan citizens from the cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad and sent them back to Afghanistan.

The NRC statement quoted Jan Egeland, the organization’s head, emphasising the dire situation faced by returnees. He also has held discussions with Taliban officials about how to support Afghan migrants.

Egeland highlighted the restriction imposed on women and girls in Afghanistan, noting that the continued ban on education for girls means that 1.5 million teenage girls are deprived of going to school.

The Taliban have banned education for women and girls, and despite widespread international protests, they have yet to take action to lift this prohibition.