The district administration in Mansehra has decided to launch a crackdown on Afghans living in the district illegally, with the aim of sending them back to their home country without delay. The Mansehra Afghan crackdown was agreed at a meeting on Friday chaired by deputy commissioner Yasir Ali Khan, the district's senior administrative officer. District police officer Mohammad Waqas Khan said police had so far repatriated 315 illegal Afghans.
What the district decided
Khan told the meeting that all Afghans living illegally anywhere in the district would be taken into custody and repatriated without delay. Representatives of other law enforcement agencies attended alongside the district police officer. The meeting also agreed to tighten checks on around 1,700 Afghan nationals who are still settled in parts of the district and running businesses.
Pakistan has hosted Afghan refugees for decades, and its policy toward them has changed several times. Mansehra is a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, in the north-west of the country.
Document checks and repatriation
Khan told participants that documents held by Afghans must be verified against records from the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA), which keeps national identity records, and other relevant departments. He said the federal government had annulled all types of cards issued to Afghans last year.
Waqas Khan said police were implementing the standard operating procedures, meaning the set rules the government has laid down for the repatriation of Afghans. He said 315 illegal Afghans had been sent back so far.
What happens next
The immediate steps are the verification of documents for Afghans still settled in the district, and custody for anyone found living there illegally, as the meeting directed. The figures officials have given so far are the 315 repatriations and the around 1,700 people under checks.
Aasan alfaaz mein
Mansehra ke zila administration ne faisla kiya hai ke ghair qanooni tor par rehne wale Afghan shehriyon ko hirasat mein lekar jaldi wapas bheja jayega. Police ke mutabiq ab tak 315 illegal Afghans wapas bheje ja chuke hain. Zila mein lagbhag 1,700 Afghan shehriyon ke documents ki sakhti se jaanch hogi. Aam logon ke liye iska matlab hai ke ilaqe mein police aur administration ki checking mein izafa ho sakta hai.
