UN agency urges Pakistan to halt expelling Afghans during winter

The United Nations refugee agency urged Pakistan on Wednesday to stop deporting undocumented Afghan refugees during the cold winter season, as police continued to inspect homes and evict Afghans who had not already departed.

Islamabad said last month that it would deport over a million undocumented refugees, largely Afghans, amid a dispute with Kabul over allegations that it harbours anti-Pakistan militants.

Since October 1, about 370,000 Afghans have fled Pakistan.

“UNHCR is calling upon the government of Pakistan to halt these mass numbers of returns during this harsh season of winter because the cold in Afghanistan is really deadly and it can take lives,” the agency’s regional spokesman, Babar Baloch, told Reuters TV in an interview.