The United Nations refugee agency says nearly 150,000 Afghans have already returned to Afghanistan from Pakistan and Iran so far in 2026 adding to an unprecedented wave of repatriations that is deepening the country’s humanitarian crisis. The returns come on top of around 2.9 million Afghans who went back in 2025 bringing the total number of people who have repatriated since late 2023 to about 5.4 million roughly 12 percent of Afghanistan’s population.
UNHCR representatives warned that the speed and scale of these movements are occurring amid severe winter conditions with freezing temperatures and heavy snowfall making the journey and reintegration harder for families arriving with few possessions. Many returnees including long‑term migrants born and raised abroad face extreme hardship with more than 90 percent living on less than $5 a day and many lacking basic civil documentation according to UN surveys.
The massive demographic shift has put enormous strain on Afghanistan’s already fragile economy and stretched its humanitarian and support systems to the brink particularly affecting women and girls in areas with limited services. UN agencies are urgently appealing for funding to help reintegrate returnees and prevent further deterioration of living conditions but resources remain insufficient.
Officials say many of these returns are not voluntary but driven by crackdowns and expulsions in neighbouring Pakistan and Iran where authorities have stepped up enforcement against undocumented migrants in recent years. Humanitarian workers warn that without coordinated global support the challenges of shelter food health and livelihoods for returning Afghans will continue to grow as the country grapples with conflict economic instability and climate stresses.
