Islamabad, February 17 – Police in Pakistan arrested 35 Afghan migrants during inspection raids carried out in Peshawar over the past week, local media reported on Tuesday.
According to the report, police conducted 41 search and inspection operations in different parts of Peshawar during the past week. During the operations, 35 undocumented Afghan nationals in Pakistan were deported, Pakistan's Samaa TV reported.
Police also detained 233 suspected individuals, and legal proceedings were initiated against them. During the operations, police registered 148 cases against criminal elements and recovered illegal weapons, the channel reported.
Last week, local media reported that police has intensified its crackdown on undocumented foreigners in Pakistan, with 5,439 illegal Afghan nationals detained in a holding centre in Rawalpindi.
Furthermore, 19 individuals have been reported missing from the centre since the government's deadline of March 31 last year to leave Pakistan voluntarily expired. The police has stepped up drives against undocumented immigrants in the federal capital territory, with action aimed to arrest undocumented Afghan citizens, Pakistan's leading daily Dawn reported.
Police has been directed to focus only on daily arrests of illegal Afghans, illegal tenants, hotel staff, and travel agents. Police officials have been warned that strict departmental action will be taken against those who do not record entries.
Police has also launched a crackdown against violations of the Tenancy Act in Rawalpindi, detaining 38 people, according to police spokespersons. They stated that actions against those arrested were conducted in areas, including Chontra, Chakri, Kahuta, Naseerabad, Chaklala, Jatli, Sadar Baruni, and Kallar Syedan.
The crackdown has been launched to implement the Tenancy Act, with daily search operations, as per the orders issued by CPO Syed Khalid Mahmood Hamdani, Dawn reported. People have been asked to register tenants to maintain law and order and register details about tenants and employees at the relevant police station.
Last month, the Taliban regime in Kabul said that the problems faced by Afghan refugees in Pakistan are rising and stressed that the Pakistani government should respect refugee rights and stop arresting and harassing Afghan migrants.
"Unfortunately, problems faced by Afghan refugees in Pakistan are increasing, with arrests, harassment, and mistreatment by Pakistani officials on the rise, leaving refugees in serious difficulty," Pajhwok Afghan News quoted Taliban deputy spokesperson Hamdullah Fitrat as saying in an audio message.
Fitrat urged the United Nations and other relevant organisations to uphold refugee protection principles and intervene in nations where refugee rights are breached. He stated that Afghan refugees who returned to Afghanistan need economic cooperation and support, Pajhwok Afghan News reported. He emphasised that the Pakistani government should be forced to respect refugee rights, follow international refugee principles, and stop arresting and harassing Afghan refugees.
