KARACHI: The Sindh Rangers and police have launched an operation to demolish the decades-old Afghan Basti in Karachi, as per the report on Wednesday.
According to details, personnel from Rangers, police, the Malir Development Authority (MDA), and other concerned departments are taking part in the operation.
Officials said all entry and exit points of the area have been sealed by Rangers, while a heavy police presence has been deployed on surrounding routes to maintain law and order.
Speaking to ARY News, DIG West Irfan Baloch said the settlement once housed nearly 30,000 Afghan nationals, who were evacuated in three phases. He added that around 2,000 residents remain in the area.
He further shared that some empty houses in the settlement had been illegally occupied, which led to the operation being launched.
The authorities aim to completely vacate the land and hand it over to the Malir Development Authority once the clearance is complete.
Earlier, federal authorities had ordered the closure of all Afghan refugee camps in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which had been in place for several years.
Refugees across the province were instructed to return to Afghanistan, with camps in Dera Ismail Khan, Tank, Lakki Marwat, Bannu, and Mansehra already shut down. Camps in Charsadda and Malakand have also been closed.
Federal officials have directed the provincial government to take control of the vacated land. Meanwhile, Punjab has begun the third phase of deporting undocumented Afghan nationals under Pakistan’s Illegal Foreigner Repatriation Plan (IFRP).