In Pakistan, the authorities have been deporting many Afghans living in the country for a long time. Now Iran is also following suit. Within a month, 60,000 people had to leave the country.
Iranian border officials have deported more than 60,000 Afghans to the neighboring country in just one month. They were in the country illegally, the Iranian news agency Tasnim reported on Telegram.
According to United Nations estimates, at least 3.5 million Afghans live in Iran, the majority of whom have no legal residence status. Especially after the Taliban came to power, numerous refugees came to the neighboring country. Many Afghan migrants work in the low-wage sector in major cities, for example on construction sites.
More than 400,000 Afghans had to leave Pakistan
Afghanistan’s neighboring country Pakistan also recently deported Afghans on a large scale. The government in Islamabad initially set a deadline for refugees without legal residence status to leave the country voluntarily. As a result, more than 400,000 Afghans have left the South Asian country since the fall. Most returned of their own accord under the pressure of the threat of deportations.