Iran's recent crackdown has expelled around 800,000 Afghan refugees, particularly since June, sparking fears about their future in a war-torn homeland as they face hardships and increasing hostility.
Iran's Mass Deportation of Afghan Refugees Accelerates Amid Rising Tensions
Iran's Mass Deportation of Afghan Refugees Accelerates Amid Rising Tensions
Over 800,000 Afghan refugees have been forcibly returned to Afghanistan as Iran intensifies its deportation campaign, raising humanitarian concerns.
In a severe humanitarian crisis unfolding along the Afghanistan-Iran border, approximately 800,000 Afghan refugees have been expelled from Iran over a short span of time, with the rate significantly accelerating since June. This mass deportation reflects Iran’s tightening policies on undocumented migrants, putting Afghan returnees in dire situations.
According to Babar Baloch, a representative from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), nearly 600,000 of these deportations occurred just since the start of June. This uptick coincided with rising tensions in the region, particularly following a brief conflict involving Israel, where Iranian officials have expressed deep-seated suspicions towards Afghans, erroneously linking a subset of them to purported espionage activities.
The Iranian government, having set a July 6 deadline for undocumented residents to leave, has seen an average of about 30,000 Afghans crossing into their homeland each day, with the number peaking at over 50,000 recently, Baloch reported. Historically, Iran has hosted millions of Afghan refugees, many fleeing years of conflict and instability. However, the increasing pressure on the Iranian economy appears to have led to a significant shift in their tolerance levels toward these vulnerable communities.
While Iranian officials maintain that documented Afghans are still being accepted, the reality paints a grim picture. Many deported individuals had secured visas to remain in Iran, only to find themselves forced back against their will. Arafat Jamal, representing UNHCR in Kabul, noted a pervasive “frenzy” in deportation actions, with little opposition to expelling Afghans from Iran at this critical juncture.
Amidst a backdrop of escalating fears and humanitarian concerns, the returnees face a stark reality of poverty and instability in Afghanistan, a country struggling with its own reconstruction following decades of war. The rising number of deported individuals underscores the urgent need for international humanitarian aid and a reevaluation of the longstanding host-guest relationship between Iran and Afghan refugees, as more and more lives hang in the balance amid regional complexities.
