ISLAMABAD (September 23, 2025): Thousands of Afghan refugees in Pakistan face renewed uncertainty as shifting global sentiment towards asylum seekers has left many stranded, vulnerable to arrest, and at risk of deportation back to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan.
Inside a modest Islamabad safehouse, 15-year-old Shayma sings Bob Dylan’s The Times They Are a-Changin’, her voice echoing softly so neighbors cannot detect her Afghan mother tongue. Music is her escape, but her family’s future remains uncertain.
US Suspension Leaves Refugees Stranded
Shayma’s family was scheduled to resettle in the United States earlier this year. However, the suspension of refugee admissions by President Donald Trump stranded more than 15,000 Afghans already cleared for relocation from Islamabad.
Thousands of others, including women, children, musicians, journalists, and former NGO workers, remain in limbo while awaiting responses from Western embassies.
“For girls like us, there is no future in Afghanistan,” said Zahra, a 19-year-old refugee bandmate.
Pakistan Tightens Its Stance
Since the Taliban takeover in 2021, Pakistan became a temporary refuge for tens of thousands of Afghans. But patience is wearing thin.
A senior Pakistani official told AFP: “This is not an indefinite transit camp. Pakistan will allow Afghans with pending cases to stay only if Western nations guarantee resettlement.”
Recent weeks have seen hundreds of refugees arrested and deported, sparking widespread fear within refugee communities in Islamabad.
Afghan Girls and Music Under Threat
Shayma, her sister Laylama, and two bandmates once learned guitar at a Kabul nonprofit music school. Music gave them hope, but it also made them targets.
When the Taliban returned to power, Western music was banned as “anti-Islamic.” Laylama’s father even burned her guitar to protect the family.
“Music changed our lives,” she recalled. “But in Afghanistan, playing it could mean punishment.”
Now, in hiding in Pakistan, the girls practice secretly—covering Coldplay’s Arabesque and Imagine Dragons’ Believer.
Advocacy Groups Warn of “Cruel Limbo”
Refugee advocacy coalitions like #AfghanEvac have criticized the international community’s inaction.
Jessica Bradley Rushing said: “Leaving these refugees in limbo is not just arbitrary, it’s cruel.”
According to analysts, Pakistan’s crackdowns are partly aimed at pressuring Western governments to accelerate resettlement programs.
Daily Life Under Fear
For Afghan families, every knock on the door brings the fear of deportation. Refugees are picked up from homes, workplaces, and even off the streets. Mosque loudspeakers in refugee neighborhoods broadcast orders to leave.
To cope with the anxiety, Shayma and her bandmates maintain strict routines: prayer at dawn, music rehearsals, YouTube English lessons, and reading classics like Frankenstein.
“It’s not normal to stay indoors all the time,” Zahra said. “But going back to Afghanistan? It’s a horrible idea.”
