While condemning the forced expulsion of refugees and their mistreatment by Pakistan, Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, deputy foreign minister for political affairs, on Monday warned the country of strong reaction and said that Afghanistan now has a strong army.

Speaking at a conference on economic development in Kabul, Stanikzai said that Pakistan’s expulsion of refugees is cruel and a unilateral decision.

“We do not give anyone the right to do the atrocities on our sisters, brothers and children that the security forces are doing on the soil of Pakistan. We were very patient and did not react strongly. Our hope and expectation from the security forces and civil government of Pakistan is that they should change their behavior and not force us to respond to their actions. The reaction of Afghans is well known to the world. Afghans do not react much and if they do, it will be recorded in history. Thank God, we have a strong defense force today. Our Ministry of Defense is strong, thank God. We have more weapons than most of our neighbors. We have a trained force that defeated NATO and America two years ago,” Stanikzai said.

This senior official of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that Pakistani forces seize the property of Afghan refugees before expelling them.

He also emphasized that Pakistan has ignored the request of the United Nations and the world not to deport Afghan refugees, while it has made money from the presence of refugees in its soil for years.

“The United Nations, the world, human rights organizations all want Pakistan to reverse its decision. But they intensify their stubbornness unilaterally and now there is a lot of pressure and crowding at our borders including Spin Boldak and Torkham. Tens of thousands of people, including children, come to Afghanistan every day,” Stanikzai said.

Pakistan has cited security concerns as the reason for expelling illegal foreigners.

Officials of the Islamic Emirate, however, have said that Pakistan is making an excuse as IEA has already made a commitment to the world that it will not allow its soil to be used against any other country.

Visiting Torkham, Acting Minister of Refugees and Repatriation Khalil-ur-Rahman Haqqani called on Pakistani authorities to stop mistreating Afghan refugees.

“They should reconsider their decision and stop this process. They should not confiscate refugees’ property, but repatriate them in a dignified manner. They should stop beating or torturing them,” Haqqani said.

The Pakistani government had given illegal refugees until November 1 to leave the country.