Muttaqi urges Pakistan to stop making decisions that harm ordinary people

Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs Amir Khan Muttaqi has called on Pakistan to stop making decisions that harm ordinary people.

This comes after Pakistan closed Torkham border crossing last month. The key border was closed to trade and people for 25 days and only partially reopened on Wednesday. Goods trucks were allowed to cross the border from Wednesday but the border will only reopen for people on Friday.

The closure of this busy trade route cost local business owners millions of dollars in losses, especially those trading in perishable goods.

Hosting an iftar reception for foreign ambassadors and diplomats in Kabul, Muttaqi said that Torkham crossing reopened following talks between the two countries.

He said that Afghanistan has no problems with neighboring countries and if any problems arise, they will be resolved through talks.

“We hope that issues with our neighboring country Pakistan will be resolved the same way and problems will end,” he said.

Muttaqi also said that the repatriation of Afghan refugees from Pakistan should happen in a gradual and dignified manner.

This comes after Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Wednesday called on Pakistan to immediately stop forcing Afghan refugees to return home.

In their latest report, HRW slammed Pakistan for having stepped up pressure on Afghan refugees and using “intensified abusive tactics” to get them to leave the country.

On January 31, 2025, Pakistan’s Ministry of Interior announced that Afghans without official residence documents, along with holders of Afghan Citizen Cards, must leave the cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi or face deportation. Afghans holding Proof of Registration (PoR) cards must leave by June 30.

A previous wave of deportations and expulsions, from September 2023 through January 2024, drove over 800,000 Afghans – many born in Pakistan or living there for decades – to Afghanistan.

Since November 2024, Pakistani authorities have renewed pressure to expel Afghans. More than 70 percent of those returning have been women and children, including girls of secondary school age and women who will no longer have access to education.

HRW stated that Pakistani police have raided houses, beat and arbitrarily detained people, and confiscated refugee documents, including residence permits.

They have demanded bribes to allow Afghans to remain in Pakistan. The United Nations reported that most Afghans who have returned to Afghanistan have cited fear of detention by Pakistani authorities as the reason they left.

Returning refugees have generally had to abandon property and savings in Pakistan, and have few livelihood opportunities or little land in Afghanistan.