Pakistan's government has ordered illegal immigrants to leave the country, which includes an estimated 1.7 million Afghans. The move comes as Islamabad grapples with a recent surge in militant attacks two years after the Taliban regained power in Afghanistan.

Pakistan's interim Interior Minister Sarfraz Bugti said on Tuesday that illegal immigrants must leave voluntarily by November 1st. He said that they will otherwise face forcible expulsion.

Bugti claimed Afghan nationals carried out 14 suicide bombings in Pakistan this year.

Pakistan has been facing increasing attacks by an outlawed local militant group, known as the Pakistani Taliban. Islamabad says the militants use Afghan soil to train fighters and conduct attacks inside the country.

On Friday, over 50 people were killed in a suicide bombing targeting a religious gathering in southwestern Balochistan province. No one has claimed responsibility.

Islamabad says a total of 4.4 million Afghan refugees are living in Pakistan. Many fled their home after the Taliban seized power in August 2021.

Afghans in Islamabad have expressed concern about the deportation measure. One immigrant said, "Pakistan is much safer for the refugees. If they go back to Afghanistan, it could be very dangerous for them."

A spokesperson for the Taliban administration said Afghan refugees are not involved in Pakistan's security problem and called on Islamabad to reconsider the plans.

The Afghan embassy in Islamabad said more than 1,000 Afghans have been detained in Pakistan in the last two weeks and half of them had a legal right to stay.