Eleven Afghan nationals died on Sunday night when an oil tanker and a vehicle carrying them collided near Nokundi, a town in Chaghi district of Balochistan province, Pakistan.
SP Chaghi Muhammad Sharif told Dunya News the crash happened on the Reko Diq Site Road. He said all 11 were killed on the spot and that the dead and injured were taken to a nearby hospital. Dunya News counted six injured. Another outlet, ANews, reported nine.
Who they were
Sharif said every victim was an Afghan trying to reach Iran without papers and, from there, Europe by way of Pakistan. Police told ANews that apart from the driver, everyone killed or hurt was Afghan. The group had been riding in a Zamyad pickup and had entered Pakistan along a route that people smugglers are alleged to use. Pakistani security officials said early findings pointed to an “organised human smuggling network.”
The response
Local residents and rescue teams reached the remote “katcha” area, about 35 kilometres from Nokundi, early Monday after reports of the crash. Together they pulled bodies from the wreckage and moved the dead and wounded to a health facility.
Dr Nadir Khan, a medical officer at Nokundi hospital, was quoted by local media as saying the hospital received “11 bodies and nine injured.” He said the injured were treated and their condition was “stable.”
Once legal formalities are done, the bodies will go to the Afghan authorities, Sharif said. A police official told ANews the bodies and the injured were being sent back to Afghanistan through cross-border coordination “in accordance with legal protocol.” The investigation is continuing.
Backdrop in Afghanistan
Migration and returns remain a heavy burden on Afghan families. Mawlavi Abdul Kabir, Afghanistan’s Minister of Refugees and Repatriation, said recently that “6.8 million Afghans have returned” since the Taliban came back to power in 2021, and that the figure is still rising. He also argued that stability under the current authorities has cut outward migration.
The International Committee of the Red Cross says Afghanistan is still among the world’s most severe humanitarian crises, with an estimated 22.9 million people needing assistance in 2025 because of conflict, economic hardship, disasters and climate change.
Sources
- 11 killed, six injured in van, oil tanker collision in Chaghi | Dunya News
- Pickup–tanker collision kills 11 Afghans injures 9 others in Pakistan
Sources
- 11 killed, six injured in van, oil tanker collision in Chaghi | Dunya News
- 11 Afghans killed in pickup–tanker collision in Pakistan | AnewZ
