Women, kids among 1,200 Afghan illegals jailed in Pakistan

By ADIL JAWAD AND MUNIR AHMED
Associated Press

KARACHI, Pakistan (AP) — Officials say Pakistani police in multiple raids detained at least 1,200 Afghan nationals, including women and children, who entered the southern port city of Karachi without valid travel documents. The arrests brought criticism from around Afghanistan after images of locked up Afghan children were circulated online. They also underscored the strained relations between the two South Asian neighbors. Police and local government officials said Wednesday the detainees will be deported to Afghanistan after serving their sentences or when the paperwork for their release is completed by their attorneys. At least 139 Afghan women and 165 children are among those being held at a high-security jail in Karachi, according to a report from Pakistan’s National Commission on Human Rights.