Court in Ghulam Sanai v. the Assistant Director (n. 7). The Court stated that individuals recognized as refugees by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Pakistan cannot avail themselves of benefits under the Pakistan Citizenship Act, 1951 and emphasized that apart from refugees, especially Afghan refugees, anyone born in Pakistan is automatically considered a citizen under Section 4 of the Act (n. 10). The above-mentioned judgments barring refugees from birthright citizenship carry significant implications for refugees accessing existing legal protection systems in the country, which makes the situation of Afghan refugees more precarious. There is no clear legal basis for the view that refugees or Afghan refugees in particular are barred from acquiring citizenship by birth through Section 4 of the Pakistan Citizenship Act. An examination of Section 4 of the Pakistan Citizenship Act, including provisos (a) and (b) of the section, make it clear that citizenship by birth is intended for children of foreign nationals as well, albeit with the only limited exceptions of children of alien enemies and foreign diplomats. Till date, no legal or policy document has declared Afghan refugees (or refugees as a whole) as enemy aliens, thereby attracting the narrow exception to citizenship by birth under Section 4 of the Act. It is also important to highlight here that Section 4 of the Act employs the term "shall" rather than "may," indicating its mandatory nature.13 This means that government authorities are obligated by law to grant citizenship and issue corresponding documentation to individuals born within Pakistan's territory. The use of "shall" underscores the compulsory nature of this provision, leaving no room for discretion among authorities.14 Moreover, an interpretation of Section 4 of the Pakistan Citizenship Act that includes children of all nationalities except Afghan refugees raises concerns of racial discrimination. The prohibition against racial 13 “Every person born in Pakistan after the commencement of this Act shall be a citizen of Pakistan by birth” (Pakistan Citizenship Act 1951, S. 4). 14 This view is also affirmed by the Islamabad High Court in Hafiz Hamdullah Saboor v. Government of Pakistan WP 3748/2019 [2021] (Islamabad). 7