Over 12,000 Afghan Refugees Return to Southern Afghanistan From Pakistan

Momin Agha, deputy head of the Refugees and Repatriation Directorate in south Afghanistan’s Kandahar province, announced Sunday that over 12,000 Afghan refugees had returned to southern Afghanistan from Pakistan in recent months. According to Agha, an average of 820 families, comprising more than 4,000 individuals, return home weekly via the Spin Boldak border crossing connecting Kandahar to Pakistan’s Baluchistan. He noted that the number of returnees was increasing.

More than 2.5 million Afghan refugees currently reside in Pakistan, mirroring a similar number in Iran. These refugees have fled Afghanistan over the past 40 years due to foreign invasions and domestic conflicts. Reports indicate that over the past year, more than 200,000 Afghan refugees have returned to Afghanistan from Pakistan and Iran combined.