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This Gender Alert has been developed by the Gender in Humanitarian Action Working Group (GiHA WG) in Afghanistan, drawing upon reports and updates from humanitarian actors, GiHA WG members, and women’s organizations in the Afghan provinces of Herat, Kandahar and Nangarhar, Afghanistan. This information was complemented by compilation and analysis of inputs obtained via 15 focus group discussions (FGDs), conducted with affected women and girls and women and men humanitarian workers at Zero Point locations and Transit Centres in Herat, Kandahar and Nangarhar. These consultations were arranged by the sub-national GiHA WGs in the three target provinces and were conducted in Dari and Pashto.
Sharp increase in forced returns of Afghans from Pakistan and Iran
Between September 2023 and April 2025, a combined total of over 2.43 million undocumented Afghan migrants returned to Afghanistan from Iran and Pakistan, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM) – with 52 per cent of these migrants forcibly returned.
According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), between 15 September 2023 and 27 May 2025, 144,500 refugee individuals, or individuals in a refugee-like situation, have returned to Afghanistan.
The pace of return from Pakistan has accelerated in recent months, following issuance by the Government of Pakistan of a deadline (initially indicated as 31 March 2025, then extended to 30 April 2025) for Afghan Citizenship Cardholders (ACC) to leave Pakistani territory – or be subject to deportation. The Government of Pakistan has authorized the detention of Afghans in 49 holding centres, property seizure and criminal penalties for anyone sheltering undocumented Afghans.
The Government of Iran launched a campaign to return undocumented Afghan migrants in November 2023, citing economic pressures and border security concerns. By the end of 2024, more than 750,000 Afghan citizens had returned from Iran.
In 2025, the pace of return from Iran has accelerated, with close to 600,000 Afghan citizens returning between 1 January and 27 May, and 58 per cent of these being forcibly returned.6 Recent months have brought further increases, with some 328,000 migrants returning between 20 March and 27 May 2025, following the introduction by the Government of Iran of a regularization and return scheme, signalling the potential return of a further 2 million migrants. During the period between 11 and 24 May 2025 alone, 119,337 returnees entered Afghanistan from Iran, marking inflow greater than that from Pakistan during this period.
Following the recent escalation of the conflict between Israel and Iran, Afghans have been returning in higher numbers than ever. Between 13 and 22 June, 119,417 Afghans have returned, with most of them (53%) citing feeling unsafe as the main reason for returning.
Following the escalation of conflict, Border Crossing Points (BCPs) with Iran have become the most active of all BCPs, accounting for 70 per cent of total cross border movements during the period 15-21 June.
The simultaneous drives by Pakistan and Iran to return Afghan migrants continue to widen the scale of forced returns occurring and stretch Afghanistan’s already thin humanitarian capacity.
While high-level visits to discuss the situation have taken place – such as that of a Government of Pakistan delegation to Kabul in April 2025, both the Government of Pakistan and the Government of Iran maintain that mass expulsions will continue.
The de facto authorities (DFA) in Afghanistan have called for returns to be “gradual and dignified”11, however conflict in the region both linked to Israeli attacks on Iran and violent border skirmishes at the AfghanistanPakistan borders are impacting the flow of returns. The latest firefight between Pakistan Frontier Corps and Taliban border guards notably claimed multiple casualties on both sides and disrupted border crossing, resulting in a two-week closure of Afghanistan’s Eastern border (Torkham BCP) in March 2025.
This underscores the volatility of the situation which in several instances has placed thousands of returnees in an even more precarious situation.