JALALABAD: A truck overturned in eastern Afghanistan on Saturday, killing 20 people on board including 12 children, a provincial official told AFP.

The vehicle was carrying Afghan families returning from Pakistan, where they had been living, according to Abdul Malik Niazai, spokesperson for the governor of Laghman province.

“Twenty people [have died] — five women, three men and 12 children,” the spokesperson said. The accident left 33 people injured.

Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said in a post on X “we pray for the speedy recovery of the injured”, adding that he was “deeply saddened” by the tragedy.

The accident happened on the road between Jalal­abad in eastern Afgha­nistan and capital Kabul.

Authorities in Pakistan have taken a tougher stance on Afghan migrants and refugees in the country — causing an outflow that often includes families travelling with their belongings in trucks.

Since the start of the year, 447,400 Afghans have returned from Pakistan, according to figures from the United Nations High Commissioner for Ref­u­gees and the International Organisation for Migration.

The repatriations are driven by the country’s Illegal Foreigners Repatr­iation Plan and border enforcement operations.

In February, the United Nations High Commis­sioner for Refugees said it continued to observe significant numbers of Afghans returning or being forced to return from neighbouring countries under extreme difficult circumstances.

Published in Dawn, May 31st, 2026