Pakistan’s government has ordered all unauthorized Afghan asylum seekers, estimated to be around 1.7 million, to leave the country by November.
The increase in militant attacks along the border this year has escalated tensions between the two countries.
Pakistan has blamed Afghanistan-based operatives for the attacks, allegations denied by the Taliban regime. But it has fueled resentment in Islamabad, which on Tuesday announced a crackdown on illegal immigrants.
Last week, an explosion at a mosque in the town of Mastung, near the border with Afghanistan, killed at least 50 people during a religious ceremony.
The right to seek asylum in a foreign country is enshrined in international law. Pakistan has taken in hundreds of thousands of Afghan refugees, especially since the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021.
About 1.3 million Afghans have registered as refugees, while another 880,000 have obtained legal status to stay.