UAE reportedly deporting thousands of Pakistani workers amid Iran tensions

Authorities in the United Arab Emirates are reportedly carrying out a large-scale deportation campaign targeting Pakistani workers, with allegations that tens of thousands have been expelled, their bank accounts frozen, and their savings confiscated amid heightened regional tensions following recent US-Israeli actions against Iran.

Initial reporting by New Lines Magazine put the number of deportees at around 15,000, News.Az reports, citing Iran's English-language Press TV. However, Pakistani sources recently told Press TV that the expulsions have continued and now affect tens of thousands of workers.

The reports claim the measures have disproportionately affected Shia Muslims or individuals who expressed public solidarity with Tehran following what Press TV described as US-Israeli military actions against Iran. Those targeted are said to have been removed without formal charges or access to legal proceedings.

According to the accounts, the process has involved sudden arrests, confiscation of mobile phones, and transfers between detention facilities before deportees are placed on flights back to Pakistan.

A Shia cleric cited by New Lines Magazine alleged that many of those expelled were not given the opportunity to withdraw funds from Emirati banks prior to deportation, leaving some families in severe financial hardship and, in some cases, wiping out years of savings accumulated during long-term employment in the UAE.

Mohammad Amin Shaheedi, head of Ummat-e-Wahida Pakistan, told the magazine that the campaign appeared to be a coordinated effort to remove Shia individuals from the country following the outbreak of conflict.

The sources further suggest the expulsions are linked to Islamabad’s position on regional conflicts involving Iran and Lebanon, as well as Pakistan’s reported role in diplomatic mediation efforts.

News.Az