I know it will be a difficult life but Allah will help us and gradually things will return to normal,'' said Juma Gul. The repatriation of 350 refugees, Wednesday, was the first this year following the end of the severe winter in Afghanistan. He claimed that individual repatriations have been going on. ''Around 3,000 refugees have returned to Afghanistan since January,'' he said. In 1999, more than 92,000 Afghan refugees returned home from Pakistan and more than 77,000 from Iran. The unofficial figures are higher.
Afghans are the largest refugee group in the world.
The Afghans have merged into Pakistan. They have never been restricted to camps, and have established themselves as a vibrant business community. Over the years the Afghans have established their own schools and a university in Peshawar. These are the urbanized Afghans, from Kabul for instance, refugees of the successive battles for the Afghan capital. The final exodus was in the wake of the takeover of the city by the Taleban, and the strict enforcement of their version of Islam.