The decades-old Pakistan-Afghanistan relationship is being strained as both countries expel each other’s people. More than 400,000 people have been expelled from both countries since the beginning of this year. For many, moving away from their ancestral homes is a fast-ending nightmare [laughter] Abdul Bashir runs a clothing store in Karachi’s Afghan Basti Market. The store was handed down to him by his father and his grandfather by his father. The family moved from Afghanistan to Karachi, Pakistan, 35 years ago. Yet they cannot call it home. Bashid is still tagged as a refugee and has been asked to pack his belongings and leave the country. We have businesses here. People have paid us about $7,850. Similarly, we have also paid people about $35,000. We are born here. Our children are born here. Even our parents are born here. How can we go there? It is not possible to go there. Bashir is one of the nearly 1.5 million Afghans in Pakistan who are facing persecution over the deadline to leave the country. The Pakistani government has now announced that it will not bring back its citizens. One year extension on expired residence cards after intervention by the United Nations Refugee Commissioner But many know that the inevitable is waiting and the sooner they go the better, it will take at least 2 to three years, people have their homes here, they have shops, they have businesses, we cannot suddenly close our business, we can go here gradually after closing our business, like I am going back after closing my business, Pakistan has its own reasons for the expulsion order which are largely rooted in politics apart from security concerns and the state of its economy, but with Afghanistan-Pakistan political relations deteriorating there is fear that