Pakistan Reopens Torkham Border to Facilitate Return of Afghan Refugees
The key border crossing resumes operations after weeks long closure following cross-border clashes, allowing stranded Afghan families to return home.
Pakistan, Oct 2 : Pakistan has reopened the Torkham border crossing in northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province to facilitate the repatriation of Afghan refugees waiting to return home, officials confirmed on Saturday.
Bilal Rao, Deputy Commissioner of Khyber district, said the crossing resumed operations early Saturday morning to enable the return of Afghan families who had been stranded on the Pakistani side for several weeks.
“Hundreds of Afghan nationals have reached the immigration center, where documentation and verification processes are underway before they are allowed to cross into Afghanistan,” Rao said.
The repatriation process had been suspended on October 11 following border clashes between Pakistan and Afghanistan, which prompted Islamabad to close all crossings for both trade and travel.
Although a ceasefire was agreed upon in Doha on October 19, Pakistan’s Foreign Office spokesperson Tahir Hussain Andrabi said during a media briefing on Friday that the border will remain “closed for trade for now,” with commercial operations resuming only once the security situation stabilizes.
The prolonged border closure had severely disrupted bilateral trade, causing a shortage of essential goods and price hikes in several parts of Pakistan.
The reopening marks a crucial step in easing humanitarian pressures along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, where thousands of Afghan refugees have been seeking repatriation amid tightening migration controls.
