Over 300 illegal houses and shops were demolished during an operation in a 40-year-old Afghan refugee settlement near the Northern Bypass, Karachi.
The operation is being conducted now because around 8,000 Afghans who previously lived in the camp have returned to Afghanistan, leaving behind concrete structures such as homes and shops, which are now being illegally occupied by land grabbers, according to Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) West, Tariq Mastoi.
He added that the demolition drive faced only minor skirmishes, which were largely fueled by rumors.
“There were minor skirmishes by some miscreants when we started the operation this morning, as someone spread rumors that the Afghans still living there with legal documents would be targeted, but after we explained to them what we are doing, calm was restored,” the SSP said.
Mastoi said that in more than 40 years, some 15,000 Afghans had built around 3000-3500 concrete structures in the camp and half of them had now returned home.
