Archive · 11 Jan 2026
Amnesty and AMSO Condemn Afghan Refugee Treatment in Pakistan
Amnesty International and the Afghanistan Media Support Organization (AMSO) are very worried about how Afghan refugees and journalists are being treated in Pakistan.
They say that many Afghans are being put in jail, harassed, and sent back to Afghanistan, which is not safe for them.
Amnesty International wrote a letter to Pakistan's leader asking him to stop these actions and protect the refugees.
AMSO is especially concerned about journalists who are being arrested and forced to leave Pakistan.
Both groups want the international community to help and make sure these people are safe.
Many Afghan journalists came to Pakistan to escape the Taliban, but now they are facing more problems with visas and the risk of being sent back to Afghanistan.
Amnesty International and AMSO have expressed grave concerns over the treatment of Afghan refugees and journalists in Pakistan, including unlawful detention, harassment, and deportation.
Around 110,000 refugees and asylum seekers face direct threats of deportation, with women, journalists, and human rights activists being particularly vulnerable.
Since September 2023, over 1.4 million Afghan refugees have returned to Afghanistan from Pakistan, with nearly half returning in 2025 alone.
AMSO has criticized the arrest of four Afghan journalists and media personnel in Pakistan's Islamabad, including the forced expulsion of one, terming the actions illegal and a serious threat to press freedom.
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) stated that Pakistan had forcibly returned at least 20 Afghan journalists to Afghanistan in 2025, breaching international protections for refugees.
- Who
- Amnesty International, Afghanistan Media Support Organization (AMSO), Afghan refugees and journalists in Pakistan
- What
- Amnesty International and AMSO have expressed grave concerns over the treatment of Afghan refugees and journalists in Pakistan, including unlawful detention, harassment, and deportation.
- When
- The letter was penned recently, with deportations increasing since September 2023 and arrests of journalists escalating over the past six months.
- Where
- Pakistan and Iran
- Why
- To highlight the vulnerabilities of Afghan refugees and journalists and call for their protection and safeguarding as per international human rights law.
- Organization
- Amnesty International, Afghanistan Media Support Organization (AMSO)
- Recipient
- Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Pakistani government and security agencies
- Concerns
- Unlawful detention, harassment, deportation of Afghan refugees and journalists
- Refugees at Risk
- 110,000 refugees and asylum seekers
- Afghan Refugees in Pakistan
- 1,495,851 returned since September 2023
- Total Deportations from Pakistan and Iran
- Over 4 million since September 2023
- Deportations in 2025
- 2.6 million
- Afghan Journalists in Pakistan
- Around 200
- Deported Afghan Journalists in 2025
- At least 20
