Kabul, May 30: A tragic accident involving a truck carrying Afghan migrants returning from Pakistan has resulted in the deaths of at least 18 individuals, including 10 children and five women. The incident occurred early Saturday morning, as reported by local media.
According to Amu TV, an Afghan media outlet, the truck overturned on a highway in the eastern province of Laghman around 5:30 AM local time. Habibullah Mubarez, the Taliban’s traffic director in Laghman, stated that the accident took place near the Surkhkanu intersection on the main Kabul-Jalalabad highway in the Karghai district.
Taliban disaster management officials in Nangarhar confirmed that all victims were Afghan migrants who had recently returned from Pakistan. They noted that the passengers had settled in Kunar province for some time before being transported to Kabul when the vehicle overturned.
A statement from the Taliban governor’s office in Laghman reported, “Eighteen people died in the crash, and 35 others were injured. The injured have been sent to medical facilities in Nangarhar for treatment.”
The cause of the accident remains unclear. This incident comes at a time when a significant number of people are returning to Afghanistan from neighboring countries, particularly Pakistan. Recent efforts have intensified to deport undocumented Afghan migrants.
According to the Taliban’s refugee commission, at least 4,000 migrants are deported from Pakistan daily. The report further stated, “International aid agencies have warned that the large-scale return of migrants is putting additional pressure on transportation networks and public services, especially in the eastern provinces, which are key entry points into the country.”
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported earlier this month that between April 26 and May 9, approximately 114,321 individuals returned to Afghanistan from Iran and Pakistan.
The organization noted that returnees included both deported individuals and those returning voluntarily, comprising 14,778 families. According to the IOM, more than 3.5 million people have returned to Afghanistan from January 1 to May 9, including about 487,000 families.
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