In the Middle East, the conflict between Israel and Hamas continues, and 2.2 million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip are living in the midst of fighting. Little attention, however, is that in South Asia, Pakistan is also carrying out a massive deportation campaign targeting millions of Afghans, most of whom are ethnic Pashtuns.
Pakistan has reportedly ordered 1.7 million Afghans living illegally in the country to leave the country by November 1 or face forced deportation. Some of these Afghans are refugees who came to Pakistan 50 years ago, and some are displaced people who have fled the war in Afghanistan in recent years. Some of them are also involved in the armed struggle against Afghan and foreign forces, such as the Mujahideen and the Taliban.
Pakistan's attitude towards these Afghans has always been ambivalent. On the one hand, Pakistan uses them as the best people in Afghanistan to support their activities in order to safeguard Pakistan's interests in the region. On the other hand, Pakistan is also concerned about their security threats, as some of them have also joined armed groups against Pakistan, such as the Pakistan Taliban movement.
The members of the Taliban movement in Pakistan are predominantly Pashtuns, who have close ties and mutual assistance with the Pashtuns in Afghanistan. They do not recognize the Durand Line between Afghanistan and Pakistan, but advocate the creation of a Pashtun emirate that would span both countries. They have launched a number of attacks on Pakistani troops, ** and intelligence agencies, resulting in a large number of **.
The Pakistani military believes that in order to fight the Pakistani Taliban movement, it is necessary to cut off their logistical and human support. Therefore, they decided to drive the Pashtuns of Afghanistan out of Pakistan in order to weaken them. It is also a means of putting pressure on the Taliban in Afghanistan to cooperate with Pakistan and not support Pakistan's enemies.
Pakistan's expulsion of Afghans has two other aims. One is to send some jihadist militants and their families and ** back to Afghanistan to settle in the border areas of northern Afghanistan in order to infiltrate and sabotage the countries of Central Asia. The Taliban in Afghanistan are not opposed to the return of these people, as they can provide them with more fighting forces. Another purpose is to turn to the international community for economic assistance from China, the West, and rich countries in the Middle East to solve Pakistan's financial woes. Pakistan can say that they do not have the capacity to resettle these Afghans and need outside support. If sufficient funding is available, Pakistan may suspend or cancel the eviction program.
Pakistan's expulsion of Afghans has led to the forced return of tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of Afghans to Afghanistan. This is a huge burden for Afghanistan, which itself is facing a serious economic, social and security crisis. The Taliban in Afghanistan seized power in 2021, but they did not contribute anything to the development and stability of Afghanistan. On the contrary, they only care about their own interests, spending almost 40% of their budget on maintaining their armed forces and training future jihadists.
The Taliban in Afghanistan have established a political system based on religious law that restricts the basic rights and freedoms of the people, especially those of women and ethnic minorities. They have also clashed with other armed groups, such as ISIS and al-Qaeda, leading to more violence and terrorist activities. The people of Afghanistan live in poverty, hunger and fear, without any hope or future.
Pakistan's expulsion of Afghans also poses a threat to peace and stability in the region. Some of these expelled Afghans may have joined the Taliban or other jihadist groups and participated in attacks on Pakistan, Central Asian countries, Iran, the South Caucasus, and Russia. They may use Afghanistan's borders with these countries to infiltrate and sabotage. They may also be financed by some countries or organizations to participate in wars against Israel, Saudi Arabia, or other countries. Afghanistan has become a ticking time bomb that could trigger an even bigger war at any moment.
Pakistan's expulsion of the Afghans is therefore a very dangerous and irresponsible practice that poses a serious threat not only to Afghanistan and Pakistan, but also to the peace and security of the entire region and the world. The international community should take urgent action in this regard, demand that Pakistan halt the expulsions and provide humanitarian protection and assistance to the Afghans. At the same time, pressure should be exerted on the Taliban in Afghanistan to renounce violence and extremism and to coexist peacefully with other political forces for the reconstruction and development of Afghanistan. The international community should also provide more support and assistance for peace and stability in Afghanistan, including political, economic, humanitarian and security support. Only in this way can Afghanistan avoid a relapse into war and chaos and protect the interests and security of Pakistan and other countries.