KABUL (SW) – Seeking refuge in foreign lands, a number of Afghan migrants said to have faced torture and detention at different borders in various countries.
A number of Afghan citizens who have sought to leave the country through irregular means since the Islamic Emirate took charge in Afghanistan told Salam Watandar that they faced many problems at the country’s borders. They added that they were beaten by the border forces and even fired upon.
Naqibullah Walwalji, an Afghan citizen who left the country after the Islamic Emirate came to power and wished to go to Turkey via Iran, said that he had been forcefully returned to Iran three times after being beaten by Turkish border guards at the border.
Islamuddin Khairkhah, another Afghan citizen who worked for the former government in the defense ministry, said he was not able to go abroad legally. He added that the human smugglers were also unable to help him cross the border, but cheated him and took away his money.
According to Khairkhah, human smugglers, in collusion with drivers, hand over asylum seekers like him to thieves. He said that the thieves and exploiters take women hostage to extort money from men.
Earlier, Human Rights Watch reported that Turkish border guards had beaten Afghan refugees to the point that some of their bones had been broken.
The Human Rights Watch called such treatment of asylum seekers as illegal and stressed that all countries, including Turkey, must respect human rights and international law.
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