Pakistan will carry out its recently announced plans to deport all illegal immigrants, including 1.7 million Afghans, in a “phased and orderly manner,” the foreign ministry said Friday.
The statement is likely meant to assuage international concerns and calm fears among Afghan refugees in Pakistan after Islamabad’s unexpectedly said Tuesday that all migrants — including the Afghans — without valid documentation will have to go back to their countries voluntarily before Oct. 31 to avoid mass arrests and forced deportation.
