Afghan migrants return from Iran amid hardship and free transit
Several returnee migrants said the aid helped them forget the hardships of exile and the exhaustion of the long journey.
Mohammad, a deported migrant from Iran, said: "I am happy that we are being transported for free and I am satisfied with our government and people who helped us. Now we can travel freely to our provinces."
Noorullah Nawrozi, another deported migrant, said: "It hasn't even been a day since we returned to the country and we are already on a bus heading to Kabul. With such a crowd, I didn't think we'd be able to leave the camp so soon."
Many deported Afghans said they were left without any money, alleging that Iranian police and drivers confiscated their belongings before deportation.
Ali Ahmad, a deported migrant, added: "We ask the Islamic Emirate to negotiate with Iran to lower bus fares. In Iranian camps, money is forcibly taken from Afghans."
Tolo News quoted Abdul Saboor, another deportee, as saying: "Living in Iran was not possible. Renting a house, going to the hospital for childbirth or treatment was very difficult. Because we are Afghans, medical costs were very high, and sometimes we weren't treated at all."
Others recounted harassment by landlords and authorities in Iran, claiming they were stripped of legal protection and denied refunds of advance rent.
Shoaib, a deportee from Iran, said: "They took me to a real estate office, tore up my contract documents and said, 'You're done.' The police were there and said the landlord had the right to do that since I had betrayed their country. I told them betrayal means killing someone or destroying a city, but I came to work and served this country."
According to Tolo News, statistics from local authorities in Herat show that nearly 750,000 Afghan migrants have entered the country through the Islam Qala border in the past month alone. Most were deported by Iran, while others returned after their residency permits expired.
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Times of Oman
a day ago
- Times of Oman
Afghan migrants return from Iran amid hardship and free transit
Herat: With public assistance ramping up, the free transportation of Afghans deported from Iran to their home provinces has accelerated, easing the burden of return for many, Tolo News reported. Several returnee migrants said the aid helped them forget the hardships of exile and the exhaustion of the long journey. Mohammad, a deported migrant from Iran, said: "I am happy that we are being transported for free and I am satisfied with our government and people who helped us. Now we can travel freely to our provinces." Noorullah Nawrozi, another deported migrant, said: "It hasn't even been a day since we returned to the country and we are already on a bus heading to Kabul. With such a crowd, I didn't think we'd be able to leave the camp so soon." Many deported Afghans said they were left without any money, alleging that Iranian police and drivers confiscated their belongings before deportation. Ali Ahmad, a deported migrant, added: "We ask the Islamic Emirate to negotiate with Iran to lower bus fares. In Iranian camps, money is forcibly taken from Afghans." Tolo News quoted Abdul Saboor, another deportee, as saying: "Living in Iran was not possible. Renting a house, going to the hospital for childbirth or treatment was very difficult. Because we are Afghans, medical costs were very high, and sometimes we weren't treated at all." Others recounted harassment by landlords and authorities in Iran, claiming they were stripped of legal protection and denied refunds of advance rent. Shoaib, a deportee from Iran, said: "They took me to a real estate office, tore up my contract documents and said, 'You're done.' The police were there and said the landlord had the right to do that since I had betrayed their country. I told them betrayal means killing someone or destroying a city, but I came to work and served this country." According to Tolo News, statistics from local authorities in Herat show that nearly 750,000 Afghan migrants have entered the country through the Islam Qala border in the past month alone. Most were deported by Iran, while others returned after their residency permits expired.
Times of Oman
3 days ago
- Times of Oman
Over 1.1 million Afghans deported from Iran, UN rushes aid amid crisis
Kabul: Zia, an Afghan man who left for Iran seven years ago in search of a better future, now finds himself in dire conditions in a returnee camp in Kabul after being forcibly deported, Tolo News reported. Zia, now living with his children in one of the makeshift camps, spoke about the harsh treatment faced during their migration and their current struggles. "We were under pressure, they fined us and deported us, and now we are left with only 200 million tomans, of which only 100 million have been given to us to cover our expenses. The UN also provides aid that's neither enough to live nor to die. Our request is for help. We have no home now," Zia told Tolo News. According to Tolo News, Zia's story reflects the situation of thousands of other Afghan returnees who continue to live between the pain of exile and homelessness in their homeland. The hardships are visibly etched on the faces of his children, shaped by years of displacement in Iran and now life without shelter in Afghanistan. In response to the worsening crisis, Tom Fletcher, the UN's Emergency Relief Coordinator, has allocated $10 million from the Central Emergency Response Fund to assist returnees from Iran. The announcement was made by Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General, Tolo News reported. "There's been a surge of returns from Iran in recent weeks. The new funding will help expand support for the most vulnerable, including women and children, as they arrive in and in their areas of return," Dujarric said. As per Tolo News, the funds aim to bolster life-saving assistance at the borders and provide aid to vulnerable groups. According to UN data, nearly 339,000 people have returned from Iran to Afghanistan in just the first twelve days of July, with over 60 percent being families and 43 percent children under the age of 18. Filippo Grandi, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, raised the issue of forced deportations during his recent visit to Tehran, urging Iranian officials to halt such actions. The developments come amid increasing pressure on Afghan migrants in Iran, according to Tolo News. Meanwhile, Mohammad Jamal Muslim, a migrant rights activist, expressed disappointment over the UN's approach. "Multilateral meetings might send a message to governments, but unfortunately, on critical issues, the UN takes a selective approach toward Third World countries and has so far done nothing meaningful for the citizens who are in need," he told Tolo News.
Times of Oman
5 days ago
- Times of Oman
"We cannot give up our enrichment": FM Araghchi says Iran open to talks
Tehran: Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said Tehran will not abandon its uranium enrichment programme despite significant damage caused by recent US and Israeli airstrikes, calling the programme a matter of "national pride", Al Jazeera reported. "It is now stopped because, yes, damages are serious and severe, but obviously, we cannot give up our enrichment because it is an achievement of our own scientists, and now, more than that, it is a question of national pride," Araghchi told US broadcaster Fox News in an interview aired on Monday. Araghchi also signaled Iran's willingness to re-engage in diplomacy, saying Iran is "open to talks" with the United States, though not directly "for the time being." According to Al Jazeera, he stated, "If they [the US] are coming for a win-win solution, I am ready to engage with them." "We are ready to do any confidence-building measure needed to prove that Iran's nuclear programme is peaceful and would remain peaceful forever, and Iran would never go for nuclear weapons, and in return, we expect them to lift their sanctions," the minister added. "So, my message to the United States is that let's go for a negotiated solution for Iran's nuclear programme," Araghchi said, according to Al Jazeera. He also emphasised that there is still a diplomatic path forward: "There is a negotiated solution for our nuclear programme. We have done it once in the past. We are ready to do it once again." As Al Jazeera reported, talks between Tehran and Washington on the nuclear programme were underway earlier this year, following years of tension since Donald Trump withdrew the US from the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). The deal had allowed for extensive international monitoring of Iran's nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief. However, recent developments have strained relations further. On June 13, Israel launched a series of surprise bombing raids targeting Iran's military and nuclear facilities, which led to the deaths of more than 900 people in Iran and at least 28 in Israel before a ceasefire was established on June 24. The US also joined in the attacks, and the Pentagon later said it had set back Iran's nuclear programme by one to two years. Al Jazeera noted that Araghchi said Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation is still assessing the damage to enriched materials and will "soon inform" the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) of its findings. "We have not stopped our cooperation with the agency," he claimed, though he added that any request for IAEA inspectors would be "carefully considered." Inspectors had previously exited Iran after President Masoud Pezeshkian signed a law suspending cooperation with the IAEA. According to Al Jazeera, Iranian officials accused the IAEA of bias following a resolution passed by its board on June 12, which accused Tehran of non-compliance with nuclear obligations. Iran has said this resolution was one of the "excuses" Israel used to justify its military strikes. Meanwhile, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric welcomed "dialogue between the Europeans and the Iranians," referring to planned talks between Iran, France, Germany, and the UK in Turkiye on Friday, Al Jazeera reported.
