Iran Deports Nearly 2,000 Afghan Migrants in Three Days

Mehdi Bakhshi, the Prosecutor General of Kerman, Iran, has announced that 1,788 undocumented Afghan migrants have been arrested and deported from the province over the past three days.

Bakhshi underscored that employing undocumented Afghans in Kerman is deemed a “crime.” The deportations were carried out as part of a plan titled “Enhancing Social Security,” which aims to bolster public safety, according to a report by the IRNA news agency on Sunday.

The judicial official reiterated that residency in Iran must be obtained through legal means, warning that violators would face punitive action and deportation.

While Iran receives international assistance, particularly from the United Nations, for hosting Afghan migrants, Iranian officials assert that the aid is insufficient. They have called for increased foreign funding to address the growing burden.

In recent months, Iran has intensified the deportation of Afghan migrants, with reports suggesting that thousands of Afghans are expelled from the country every week. According to Afghanistan International, some Afghans with valid visas and residency permits have also been detained and deported by Iranian authorities.

Iran has announced plans to deport two million Afghan migrants by the end of the current year, marking a significant escalation in its immigration enforcement efforts.