Pakistan said on Monday that the fencing work along the Afghan border would be completed by August 14, amidst fears of a new Afghan refugee crisis as a result of the unrest in the neighbouring nation.
Afghans have been driven out of their country by decades of war, with the majority fleeing to Pakistan to the east and Iran to the west.
According to UN refugee agency data from the beginning of the year, Pakistan has 1.4 million Afghan refugees and Iran has nearly a million.
Minister for Interior Sheikh Rashid Ahmed told a news conference in Islamabad that the fencing along the Afghan border will be completed by August 14, and that 46 to 48 percent of the barrier at the Iranian border had been completed.
He claimed that thousands of foreigners have been living in the country for many years without having their visas renewed.
