SWABI: About 140 Afghan families have left the Gohati and Gandaf refugee camps here for their motherland since the start of voluntarily repatriation of Afghan refugees in the country, sources told Dawn here on Friday.

However, they added the departing families were saddened with a number of their members weeping. They said emotional scenes were witnessed as the departing Afghans waved to locals who gathered to say adieu to them.

The sources said there were total 3,400 Afghan families residing in Gandaf camp and about 4,000 families living in Gohati camp, adding majority of returning families belonged to Kunduz and Kunar provinces, both are stronghold of Afghan Taliban.

The Afghans said though Pakistan had already extended their stay till March next year, repeated statements made by various Pakistani leaders due to increasing incidents of terrorism had indicated that Islamabad was in no mood to bear their burden any longer.

Khan Mohammad, a returning Afghan, said: “No doubt, we will face formidable challenges in Afghanistan, but we have no other option, but leave Pakistan.”

Another Afghan said they would have to restart their lives from scrap in the war-ravaged Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, many Afghans said the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) had delayed their stay in Pakistan until December. They told Dawn that a number of Afghan families had finalised their arrangements to return to their motherland as soon as possible, but when they recently visited the UNHCR offices the officials told them to wait until the beginning of December.

Published in Dawn, October 9th, 2016