She was the face of a generation. 3 decades on, the world is talking about her again.

A cover girl with a story like no other: Why the Afghan girl is making headlines once more.

She was the face of Afghani refugee’s plight 30 years ago and now her face is a symbol of the growing hostility Pakistanis feel towards refugees they believe have outstayed their welcome.

In 1984, National Geographic printed one of their best and most well-known covers. It was the image of Sharbat Gula, her green-eyes piercing down the camera lens.

She became known as the ‘Afghan Girl’ and her face symbolized the plight of Afghan refugees who were forced into Pakistan refugee camps following the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979.

Three decades on, and Gula’s face now represents the hostility between Pakistan and Afghanistan as many believe the refugees have outstayed their welcome.

On Tuesday Pakistani media published a photo from Gula’s computerized national identity card (CNIC), a document no foreign citizen is eligible for.

Gula was found to be living in the country on these fraudulent papers by Pakistani officials under the name of Sharbat Bibi.

Her image was shared by the media as proof of underlying corruption within the government, angry that out of 3 million Afghan refugees the most well-known was able to acquire the ID.

Tensions continue to grow in Pakistan as they blame Afghan refugees for an increase in crime and terrorism.

Read more:Women’s rights in Afghanistan backsliding.

Most Afghans have settled in the north-western city of Peshawar and is where Gula applied for her ID.

Hamid-ul-Haq is the MP representing the city and has pushed for refugees to leave.

“We need them to leave Pakistan because we are badly suffering,”  he told The Guardian.

“All our streets, mosques, schools are overloaded because of them. It is time for them to leave Pakistan honourably.”

Read more:What does the Government’s new refugee policy mean? “They’ll just rot in Indonesia forever.”

It’s believed Gula was able to access the ID through a range of fake documents aided by two men who claimed to be her sons. Sharbat Gula’s fate is unknown, but a spokesman for the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA), Faik Ali Chachar, told the AFP that their Federal Investigation Agency was looking into her case.

The NADRA are leading the crack-down on refugees living in Pakistan on fraudulent IDs.

Watch as National Geographic photographer Steve McCurry talks about his award-winning image of Sharbat Gula.