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Pakistan Halts Torkham Repatriations After Cross-Border Attack

A shooting that wounded a Pakistani guard forced a pause to a newly restarted, tightly controlled deportation program, highlighting how fragile the border process remains.

Overview

  • - Pakistan reopened the Torkham crossing after about a month to restart phased returns of undocumented Afghans, then closed it again when cross-border fire injured a Frontier Corps soldier near the Awal Khan post.
  • - Authorities ran the process through designated holding sites at Landi Kotal and the Hamza Baba complex with FIA, NADRA, Customs, and the NLC handling checks and transfers.
  • - Immigration officials said 40 Afghan prisoners were handed to Afghan authorities after clearance at Landi Kotal, with about 150 more prisoners queued for deportation under the first phase.
  • - Other tallies differed by outlet, with officials in one report confirming at least 50 deportees and another later report citing roughly 292 people returned during the brief reopening.
  • - Afghan officials had welcomed the reopening, yet the stop underscores strained ties and the broader halt to Pakistan–Afghanistan trade in place since October 12, 2025.