The Kabul Tribune (KT) — Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has urged Pakistan to stop the forced return of Afghan refugees under its Illegal Foreigners Repatriation Plan (IFRP), warning that the policy is restricting refugees' access to healthcare and placing vulnerable people at greater risk.
In a statement, MSF called on the Pakistani government to
ensure that Afghan refugees are not forcibly returned to Afghanistan and to
establish formal exemptions for individuals with international protection
needs. The organization also urged countries hosting Afghan refugees to suspend
all involuntary returns to Afghanistan.
MSF said many Afghan refugees in Pakistan are living in
constant fear of arrest, detention, eviction, loss of income and deportation.
According to the organization, many refugees are delaying or avoiding medical
treatment because they fear being detained or subjected to documentation checks
at health facilities.
The medical charity said the policy has resulted in
preventable health problems, including cases of malnutrition and pregnancy
complications. It cited the case of an Afghan refugee whose wife suffered a
miscarriage after he was arrested during a police raid despite presenting a
valid Proof of Registration (PoR) card.
MSF also reported that mobile clinics it operated in Quetta,
Balochistan, in early 2026 found high levels of acute malnutrition among
children. According to the organization, nearly 90% of malnourished patients
were Afghan refugees, most of them women and children.
The organization noted that Pakistan began implementing the
Illegal Foreigners Repatriation Plan in November 2023, initially targeting
undocumented Afghans before expanding the policy to include holders of Afghan
Citizen Cards (ACC) and Proof of Registration (PoR) cards. It added that
Pakistani authorities issued a directive on July 10, 2026, ordering the arrest
and accelerated deportation of Afghan nationals without valid visas.
Citing figures from the U.N. refugee agency (UNHCR), MSF
said more than 2.5 million Afghans have returned to Afghanistan under the
repatriation plan, many of them involuntarily. The organization also noted that
the United Nations has identified more than 70,000 Afghan refugees who would
face imminent risks if returned.
From Afghanistan's perspective, MSF warned that the
continued return of large numbers of refugees is placing additional strain on
the country's already fragile healthcare system and humanitarian services. The
organization said that between 2023 and 2026, about 6 million Afghans returned
from Pakistan and Iran, adding pressure to a health sector already affected by
funding cuts and economic challenges.
MSF said its assessments in informal returnee settlements in
Kandahar province found limited access to healthcare, inadequate shelter,
undernutrition and poor sanitation, increasing the risk of disease outbreaks.
The organization called on Pakistan to renew its
long-standing support for Afghan refugees by adopting mechanisms to identify
and protect people at risk if returned, including women and girls, children,
older people, persons with disabilities, those requiring urgent medical care
and refugees awaiting resettlement.
