Gender update #1 | Forced Returns from Pakistan

The Gender Alert is based on reports, and updates from humanitarian actors, and women's organizations in the Southern and Eastern regions of Afghanistan.

On 3 October 2023, Pakistan introduced the “Illegal Foreigners Repatriation Plan”, ordering all undocumented foreign nationals to leave the country. The measure affects 1.7 million Afghan refugees who may be subject to deportation. Since the plan came into force on 1 November 2023, a total of 327,400 Afghan refugees have fled Pakistan crossing the Torkham (Nangarhar) and Spin Boldak (Kandahar) borders.1 This number continues to increase daily. To respond to these events, the authorities have set up a Returnee Commission, which also oversees local committees at the provincial level, aiming to coordinate the response to the forced displacement...