ON World Refugee Day, it is essential we confront the scale of human displacement, which has now reached record-breaking levels globally. According to UNHCR, 122m people were displaced by war and persecution by the end of April. While wars, persecution and climate disasters continue to drive this crisis, it is the response of host nations and the global community that remains in need of introspection. Pakistan has long been a front-line state in hosting refugees, particularly from Afghanistan. For decades Afghans fleeing conflict and poverty found refuge here. As of 2023, Pakistan sheltered between 3.7m to 4.4m Afghans. However, recent months have seen a drastic shift: since April over 200,000 undocumented Afghans have been forced to leave the country amid intensified deportation drives. Nearly 1m have been expelled since late 2023. Their return is precarious. Scores have left with little more than the clothes on their backs to a homeland rife with insecurity. Sending people back without individual risk assessments contradicts the principle of non-refoulement.
The situation in the Middle East is even more perilous. Israel’s brutal military onslaught in Gaza has displaced at least 664,800 Palestinians between March 18 and June 11, bulldozing homes and propelling families into overcrowded tent cities. OCHA estimates that 82pc of the enclave is now subject to displacement orders or militarised zones. With fuel throttled, hospitals failing and bread queues strafed by gunfire, Gaza teeters on famine’s brink while aid convoys crawl through a tightening siege. The international community’s repeated calls for an immediate ceasefire and unfettered humanitarian access have been met with indifference in Tel Aviv and paralysis at the UNSC. In Sudan, the civil war has uprooted over 12.3m, including 8.8m IDPs and 3.5m refugees — making it the world’s largest displacement crisis. Refugees are not a threat; they are a consequence of threats the world has failed to resolve. On this day, Pakistan must reaffirm its obligations under global conventions and ensure dignity and due process for all those within its borders. The international community must also share the responsibility. Wealthier nations must offer resettlement options and support host countries struggling with the fallout of regional crises. Without tackling root causes — from Afghan instability to Gaza’s siege and Sudan’s civil war — we perpetuate cycles of displacement and suffering.
Published in Dawn, June 20th, 2025
