Six Million Afghans Forced Back as Refugee Crisis Deepens

Published: 11 August 2026 | The English Chronicle Desk | The English Chronicle Online

At the Torkham border crossing between Pakistan and Afghanistan, families arrive carrying whatever remains of lives they were forced to abandon. Elderly people struggle forward on crutches, children clutch chickens and small belongings, while exhausted parents wait in queues beneath the heat to complete registration before beginning an uncertain new chapter.

For many, the return to Afghanistan is anything but a homecoming.

Nazia, a 35-year-old woman born and raised in Pakistan, had never previously lived in Afghanistan. Yet after years in Pakistan, she has now been forced to cross the border with two of her children.

“It feels good to be in my own country,” she says shortly after crossing into Afghanistan. But the statement is immediately followed by a sobering reality.

“I’ve never been to Afghanistan before and many people here don’t even have enough bread to eat.”

Her experience captures the dilemma facing millions of Afghans who have spent much of their lives outside the country but are now being compelled to return.

The United Nations estimates that about six million Afghans have returned from Pakistan and Iran in less than three years, creating what the UN refugee agency describes as an unprecedented return movement in recent history.

The latest arrivals come as both neighbouring countries intensify efforts to remove undocumented Afghan migrants. Human rights organisations and UN officials have warned, however, that the pressure is extending beyond people without legal documentation and affecting some registered refugees as well.

For those arriving at the border, the question is no longer simply where they came from. It is how they will survive after reaching a country many barely know.

A Home They Have Never Known

The movement of Afghans across the borders of Pakistan and Iran is not new. For decades, conflict, political instability, economic hardship and insecurity have driven millions away from Afghanistan.

The Soviet invasion in the 1980s created one of the largest refugee movements of the modern era. Later conflicts, the rise of the Taliban, the US-led intervention and renewed fighting pushed further generations across the borders.

Some families have lived in Pakistan or Iran for decades.

For people such as Nazia, Afghanistan is therefore a country known largely through family memories, stories and cultural traditions rather than personal experience.

At Torkham, many returnees arrive with little more than the possessions they managed to carry.

Sarwar, who says he left Afghanistan about 45 years ago during the Soviet invasion, returned recently with seven brothers and their families. Their belongings were packed into a Pakistani lorry as they made the journey towards a country most of the younger members of the family had never known.

“We spent a long time there, so of course I felt heartbroken when they forced us out of our home,” he says.

Yet his experience contains an uncomfortable contradiction. Despite the pain of being expelled from Pakistan, he says he is relieved to have escaped what he describes as repeated harassment from police.

For many returnees, the border therefore represents both an ending and a beginning, with neither side offering an easy future.

Pressure From Pakistan and Iran

Pakistan and Iran have hosted millions of Afghans over several decades. Both governments now argue that the time has come for undocumented Afghans to return.

Authorities in Pakistan have cited security concerns and economic pressures, while Iran has also accelerated deportations.

Human rights organisations have raised concerns about the methods used to enforce removals. Human Rights Watch has previously documented allegations involving raids, arrests and searches affecting Afghan families in Pakistan.

The Pakistani government has rejected suggestions that Afghan nationals are systematically mistreated, saying measures are intended to be carried out according to the law.

But families interviewed near the border describe a different experience, with many saying they have faced discrimination, fear and uncertainty before being forced to leave.

For some, the sudden loss of employment, housing and community networks has left them arriving in Afghanistan without a realistic means of supporting themselves.

A Humanitarian Crisis on a Massive Scale

The scale of the return movement is placing enormous pressure on Afghanistan, a country already facing a severe humanitarian crisis.

The UN estimates that tens of millions of Afghans require humanitarian assistance, while children remain particularly vulnerable to hunger and malnutrition.

The arrival of millions more people creates additional demands for food, shelter, healthcare, education and employment.

Near Torkham, temporary settlements have been established to provide returning families with basic assistance. But the shelters offer only a short-term solution.

Many families have no permanent home waiting for them.

Zarina, a returnee with several girls in her family, says she has no resources to establish a business or rebuild a livelihood.

Her concerns extend beyond poverty.

Afghanistan under Taliban rule has imposed severe restrictions on women and girls, including restrictions on secondary and higher education and participation in many areas of public life.

For mothers returning with daughters, those policies create another layer of uncertainty.

“Look at them, they’re all girls. Of course I’m worried,” Zarina says.

The fear is particularly acute among women who spent years building lives in Pakistan or Iran and now face a society where their freedom is significantly restricted.

Fear Among Former Officials

Not every returnee is simply facing economic hardship.

Some fear persecution.

Among those affected are former Afghan government employees, soldiers and security personnel who fled after the Taliban returned to power in 2021.

The Taliban announced an amnesty after taking control of the country, saying former officials and security personnel would not face retaliation.

But some returnees remain deeply sceptical.

One former Afghan security guard, who had been deported after living in Iran and Pakistan, says he does not trust the Taliban’s promises.

“I have no trust in their amnesty because many of my colleagues have been killed,” he says.

He says he remains afraid to leave his home and worries about the safety of his wife and children.

For people in this position, returning to Afghanistan is not simply a humanitarian challenge. It can represent a direct security risk.

Afghanistan’s Difficult Economic Outlook

The economic circumstances confronting returnees are also bleak.

Afghanistan remains heavily dependent on international humanitarian assistance, while sanctions and diplomatic isolation have limited the country’s ability to attract investment and create sufficient employment.

The reduction in global aid has made the situation more difficult.

The UN has repeatedly warned that declining humanitarian funding threatens essential services at a time when millions of Afghans already require assistance.

For returnees arriving without savings, property or employment, finding a sustainable livelihood can be almost impossible.

The problem is particularly serious in rural areas where opportunities are limited and communities themselves are struggling to meet basic needs.

Taliban Government Faces Growing Pressure

The Taliban administration has welcomed the return of Afghans, arguing that their presence could ultimately strengthen the country’s economy and society.

Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi has acknowledged the pressure created by the arrivals but maintains that the return movement could benefit Afghanistan in the long term.

“We need some help,” he has acknowledged, while arguing that the return of Afghans could eventually benefit both the individuals involved and the country.

But international organisations warn that Afghanistan cannot absorb millions of people without substantial assistance.

UNHCR officials say the scale of the return movement is beyond what Afghanistan can manage alone.

The Taliban’s policies toward women and girls are also complicating efforts to secure international support. Restrictions on female education and employment remain among the major obstacles to improved relations between the Taliban government and Western governments.

Only a small number of countries have moved towards formal recognition of the Taliban administration, while Afghanistan remains diplomatically isolated in much of the world.

At the same time, the Taliban has sought stronger relations with neighbouring countries and regional powers, including China, India and Central Asian states.

A New Beginning With Almost Nothing

At Torkham, however, geopolitical arguments feel distant from the immediate concerns of returning families.

People want somewhere to sleep, food for their children and a way to earn money.

They have left behind houses, jobs, schools, friendships and communities built over decades.

For some, Afghanistan is their ancestral homeland but not their lived experience.

For others, it is a country they remember from childhood but barely recognise after years away.

The UN’s estimate that roughly six million Afghans have returned in a relatively short period demonstrates the extraordinary scale of the crisis.

It is not simply a story of migration. It is a story of people being forced to reconstruct their lives in a country that itself is struggling to recover from decades of conflict.

The returnees are arriving at a moment when Afghanistan’s humanitarian needs remain enormous and its economy fragile.

For women and girls, the future carries additional restrictions. For former government personnel, there are fears about security. For families without property or savings, there is the immediate struggle for survival.

At the border, the word “home” therefore carries very different meanings.

For some, crossing into Afghanistan offers a sense of relief after years of uncertainty abroad. For others, it means entering a country they have never known.

Either way, the journey does not end at the border.

It begins again there.

And for millions of Afghans arriving with little more than the possessions they can carry, the challenge is not simply returning home. It is finding a way to build a life in a country that is already struggling to provide one.

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