KABUL/TEHRAN (SW) – Several Afghan migrants in Iran report that due to the rising xenophobia, a significant number of documented and undocumented immigrants have been sent back to Afghanistan.
A new wave of public protests in Iran, aimed at expelling Afghan migrants from the country, has recently emerged. These protests began late last week following the killing of an Iranian citizen in Tehran by three Afghan migrants and have continued since.
Iranian citizens have recently expressed their disdain for the presence of foreign nationals in Iran through hashtags on social media, calling on the government to expel them immediately.
Sanawbar, an Afghan migrant residing in Iran, says that with the recent tensions against Afghans, they are living in confusion and uncertainty. She adds: “The expulsion of Afghan migrants in Tehran has increased; many restrictions have been imposed. Many documented migrants and even those who have come with more documents cannot move around easily. Unfortunately, good people also suffer and are subjected to humiliation and insult.”
Somaya, another Afghan migrant in Iran, states: “The current situation of Afghans here is not good; among the decisions the Iranian government is making against Afghans, they are living in an uncertain situation where it is not clear whether they will stay or go. Even those with cards are being deported.”
Abdul Matin Haqqani, spokesperson for the Ministry of Repatriation and Refugees (MoRR), told Salam Watandar that in the past month, 52,000 people have been returned from Iran to Afghanistan.
“In the past month, nearly 128,000 Afghans have returned from Iran to the country, of which 52,000 were forcibly deported, and the rest came of their own accord. The Ministry has had meetings with Iranians and the Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs to address this problem, and to some extent, the issue has been resolved,” he said.
However, officials from the MoRR have not yet stated about creating job opportunities and resettlement plans for migrants returning from neighboring countries.
Amid the rising xenophobia in Iran, the Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister tweeted on Friday that the issue of migration needs to be addressed by identifying the root causes of migration and cannot be solved through xenophobia and building walls at the borders.
