PESHAWAR: Peshawar High Court has stopped law enforcement agencies from deporting two Afghan brothers, who claimed of having worked with American forces in Afghanistan and have now been seeking asylum in Canada.

A bench consisting of Justice Wiqar Ahmad and Justice Babar Sattar has sought response of respondents including federal interior ministry to a petition jointly filed by the two brothers named Masihullah and Ghobar, requesting the court to restrain police and other law enforcement agencies from deporting them during the completion of their resettlement process in Canada.

Advocate Malik Shahbaz Khan appeared for the petitioners and stated that his clients were Afghan nationals and they had presently been peacefully residing in Mansehra district of Pakistan.

He claimed that prior to overthrowing of the previous Afghan government by Taliban in 2021, the petitioners had worked with American forces there due to which they were now having serious threats to their lives. He stated that the petitioners would face persecution by Taliban, now ruling Afghanistan, if they were deported there.

Petitioners claim they worked with US forces and may face persecution in Afghanistan

He said that the petitioners had approached Canadian embassy for protection and resettlement there. He said that they had already undergone the initial processing and interview stage and had now been awaiting confirmation regarding their resettlement. He also referred to e-mail communication between the petitioners and the Canadian embassy.

The counsel contended that any coercive measures at that stage including deportation of the petitioners would not only endanger their lives but would also frustrate their ongoing protection process.

Meanwhile, the bench extended interim relief granted to a prominent Afghan forensic expert and his family till June 1 directing LEAs not to deport them till then.

The bench directed the assistant attorney general, Barrister Rahat Ali Khan, and a law officer of National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) Mohammad Mubarak Jan to file comments on behalf of the respondents.

Advocate Osama Khalil appeared for the petitioners including Dr Khalil Ahmad Pashtunyar, a former head of Forensic Medicine Services in Afghanistan, and his six family members including his wife and five children, seeking directives for LEAs and government to allow their stay in Pakistan and not to harass them till finalisation of their resettlement process initiated by UNHCR.

The petitioners had sought declaration of court that they were entitled to protection under a notification issued by federal interior ministry on Nov 3, 2023, whereby a clear and explicit policy was announced exempting Afghan nationals awaiting resettlement.

The counsel stated that Dr Khalil was a distinguished medical professional and had remained head of forensic medicine and was also a known human and women rights defender.

He stated that Dr Khalil had also served as a member of Anti-Torture and Human Rights Committee as well as other panels of Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission.

He stated that after Taliban took over Afghanistan, the petitioner migrated to Pakistan through valid travel documents so as to avoid persecution due to threats linked to his professional and human rights work. In Pakistan, he stated, he applied for asylum through United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the embassy of France for relocation to a third country.

He stated that as the cases of petitioners were actively documented with both the UNHCR and the French embassy, they fell within the protected category and couldn’t be treated as illegal foreigners.

Published in Dawn, May 13th, 2026