Afghan refugees are citizens of Afghanistan who were compelled to abandon their country as a result of major wars, persecution, torture and genocide. The 1978 Saur Revolution followed by the 1979 Soviet invasion marked the first wave of internal displacement and international migration from Afghanistan to neighboring Iran and Pakistan. Smaller number went north and began residing in various cities across the then Soviet Union. When the Soviet forces left Afghanistan in February 1989, many refugees returned to their homeland. They again migrated to neighboring countries during and after the Afghan Civil War (1992–1996).
Afghanistan became one of the largest refugee-producing countries in the world.[1] Over 6 million Afghan refugees were residing in both Iran and Pakistan in the year 2000.[2] Currently, they are the third largest group after Venezuelan refugees and Syrian refugees.[3] Some countries that were part of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) established special programs to allow thousands of Afghans to resettle in North America or Europe.[4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15] As stateless refugees or asylum seekers, they are protected by the well-established non-refoulement principle and the U.N. Convention Against Torture.
They receive the maximum government benefits and protections in countries such as Australia, Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States.[16][17] For example, those that receive green cards under 8 U.S.C. § 1159 can immediately become "non-citizen nationals" of the United States pursuant to , without needing to meet the requirements of .[18] This allows them to travel with distinct United States passports.[19] Australia provides a similar benefit to admitted refugees.
Internal displacement
There are over one million internally displaced people in Afghanistan.[20] Most Afghans experience displacement as a result of military actions and violence by the warring factions, although there are also reasons of major natural disasters.[21] The Soviet invasion caused approximately 2 million Afghans to be internally displaced, mostly from rural areas into urban areas.[21] The Afghan Civil War (1992–1996) caused a new wave of internal displacement, with many citizens moving to northern areas in order to avoid the Taliban totalitarianism.[21] Afghanistan continues to suffer from insecurity and conflict, which has led to an increase in internal displacement.[22][23][24]
Neighboring and regional countries
Native people from Afghanistan lawfully reside and work in about 92 countries around the world.[25][26] About three in four Afghans have gone through internal and/or external displacement in their life.[21] Unlike in certain other countries, all admitted refugees and those granted asylum in the United States are statutorily eligible for permanent residency (green card) and then U.S. nationality or U.S. citizenship.[18] All of their children automatically become Americans if they fulfill all of the requirements of , or .[27] This extends their privileges, and gives all of them additional international protection against any unlawful threat or harm.[28]
Pakistan
Approximately 1,438,432 registered Afghan refugees and asylum seekers temporarily reside in Pakistan under the care and protection of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).[25][29][30][31][32][33][34][35] Of these, 58.1% reside and work in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 22.8% in Balochistan, 11.7% in Punjab, 4.6% in Sindh, 2.4% in the capital Islamabad and 0.3% in Azad Kashmir.[31][33] Most were born and raised in Pakistan in the last four decades but are considered citizens of Afghanistan.[36] They are free to return to Afghanistan under a voluntary repatriation program or move to any other country of the world and be firmly resettled there.
Since 2002, around 4.4 million Afghan citizens have been repatriated through the UNHCR from Pakistan to Afghanistan.[31][37] Members of the Taliban and their family reside among the Afghan refugees in Pakistan.[38][39][40][41][42] Others such as the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) applicants and their family members, who are awaiting to be resettled in the United States,[4][5][9][10] are also residing in Pakistan. Regarding the Taliban, Prime Minister of Pakistan stated the following:
What the Taliban are doing or are not doing has nothing to do with us. We are neither responsible, nor the spokesperson for the Taliban.[43]
— Imran Khan, July 2021
Iran
As of October 2020, there are 780,000 registered Afghan refugees and asylum seekers temporarily residing in Iran under the care and protection of the UNHCR.[25][29][44][45] The majority of them were born in Iran during the last four decades but are still considered citizens of Afghanistan. According to Iranian officials, 2 million citizens of Afghanistan who have no legal documents and over half a million Iranian visa holders also reside in various parts of the country.[44][45] Iran has long been used by Afghans to reach Turkey and then Europe where they apply for political asylum.[46][47][48] As in Pakistan, the Afghan refugees are not firmly settled but reside there on a temporary basis.
Iran's initial response towards Afghan refugees, driven by religious solidarity, was an open door policy where Afghans in Iran had freedom of movement to travel or work in any city in addition to subsidies for propane, gasoline, certain food items and even health coverage.[49][50] In the early 2000s, Iran's Bureau for Aliens and Foreign Immigrants Affairs (BAFIA) initiated registration of all foreigners, including refugees. It began issuing temporary residence cards to certain Afghans.[51] In 2000, the Iranian government also initiated a joint repatriation program with the UNHCR.[51] Laws were passed in order to encourage the repatriation of Afghan refugees, such as limits on employment, areas of residence, and access to services including education.[51]
India
India hosts approximately 15,806 Afghan refugees within its borders.[29][52][53] The majority of them reside and work in the nation's capital Delhi, specifically in the neighborhoods of Lajpat Nagar, Bhogal and Malviya Nagar.[52] Some of them operate "shops, restaurants and pharmacies."[52] India became a host for Afghan refugees in the Soviet–Afghan War in 1971.[54] Much of Afghanistan's Christian community thrives within India.[55] In 2021, following the end of the War in Afghanistan, India offered an emergency visa (the 'e-Emergency X-Misc Visa') to all Afghan nationals, regardless of their religion.[56][54]
International aid
Due to the ongoing conflict, insecurity, unemployment, and poverty in Afghanistan, the Afghan government has had difficulty coping with its internally displaced population in addition to the influx of returnees in a short period of time. In order to meet the needs of returning refugees, the UN has appealed the international community for $240 million in humanitarian assistance.[20]
In March of 2003, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and the UNHCR signed a tripartite agreement, as an effort to facilitate voluntary repatriation of Afghan refugees.[57] In 2015, the high level segment of the UNHCR's 66th Executive Committee meeting concentrated on Afghan refugees. This was an effort to bring international attention and promote sustainable solutions for the Afghan refugee situation.[26]
Statistics
As shown in the chart below, Afghan refugees were admitted to other countries during the following periods:
- Soviet–Afghan War (1979–1989)
- Afghan Civil War (1992–96)
- Taliban Rule (1996–2001)
- War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
| Country | Soviet–Afghan War (1979–89) | Civil War (1992–96) | Taliban Rule (1996–2001) | War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Pakistan
|
3,100,000 [58] |
|
|
1,438,432 | [25][29][31][30][33] |
 Iran
|
3,100,000 [58] |
|
|
780,000 | [25][29][44] |
 Germany
|
|
|
|
147,994 | [25] |
 Turkey
|
|
|
|
129,323 | [29] |
 Austria
|
|
|
|
40,096 | [25][59] |
 France
|
|
|
|
31,546 | [25] |
 Sweden
|
|
|
|
29,927 | [25] |
 Greece
|
|
|
|
21,456 | [25] |
 India
|
|
|
|
15,806 | [29][60] |
 United States
|
|
|
|
15,490 | [61][62] |
 Switzerland
|
|
|
|
14,523 | [25] |
 Italy
|
|
|
|
12,096 | [25] |
 Australia
|
|
|
|
10,659 | [25] |
 United Kingdom
|
|
|
|
9,351 | [25] |
 Indonesia
|
|
|
|
7,629 | [29][63][25] |
 Tajikistan
|
|
1,161 [64] | 15,336 [64] | 5,573 | [25] |
 Netherlands
|
|
|
|
5,212 | [25] |
 Belgium
|
|
|
|
4,689 | [25] |
 Norway
|
|
|
|
4,007 | [25] |
 Finland
|
|
|
|
3,331 | [25] |
 Malaysia
|
|
|
|
2,661 | [29][25] |
 Romania
|
|
|
|
2,384 | [65] |
 Canada
|
|
|
|
2,261 | [25] |
 Denmark
|
|
|
|
2,134 | [25] |
Human rights abuses
Human rights abuses against admitted Afghan refugees and asylum seekers have been documented widely. This include mistreatment, persecution or torture in Pakistan, Iran, Turkey, Greece, Romania, Serbia, Hungary, Germany, the United States and in several other NATO-members states.[66][17] Afghans living in Iran, for example, were deliberately restricted from attending public schools.[67][68][69] As the price of citizenship for their family members, Afghan children as young as 14 were recruited to fight in Iraq and Syria for a six-month tour.[70]
Afghan refugees were regularly denied visa to travel between countries to visit their family members, faced long delays (usually a few years)[71] in processing of their visa applications to visit family members for purposes such as weddings, gravely ill family member, burial ceremonies, and university graduation ceremonies; potentially violating rights including free movement, right to family life and the right to an effective remedy.[72][73][74] Racism, low wage jobs including below minimum wage jobs, lower than inflation rate salary increases, were commonly practiced in Europe and elswhere. Many Afghan refugees were not permitted to visit their family members for a decade or two. Studies have shown abnormally high mental health issues and suicide rates among Afghan refugees and their children.[75][76][77][78][79][80]
