Afghan migrants in Iran have reported increasing harassment and inappropriate behavior from both Iranian citizens and police. Videos circulating on social media have shown Afghan migrants being mistreated and subjected to anti-Afghan slogans. Omid Hassan, an Afghan migrant, shared his experiences with TOLOnews, stating, “Iranians beat Afghans and unfortunately, so far seven Afghans, including a woman, have died; I don’t know if they were killed in the breadline.” Another migrant, Ali Mohammad, mentioned the harassment Afghans face in public places such as Qiyam and subway queues.
These migrants have called on the Islamic Emirate and migrant support institutions to address their precarious situation in Iran. Akbar Soltani, another Afghan migrant, expressed his frustration, saying, “There is no distinction between people, all of them dislike Afghan migrants, and when arrested by the police, they beat them extensively.”
The Ministry of Refugees and Repatriations reported the return of 128,000 individuals from Iran in the past month. Abdul Mutalib Haqqani, spokesperson for the ministry, stated, “In the past month, around 1,800,000 Afghan migrants have returned from Iran, with about 52,000 returning forcibly and the rest voluntarily.”
Khalil Rahman Haqqani, the acting minister of Refugees and Repatriation, recently met with Arafat Jamal, the representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Afghanistan, to discuss the issues facing Afghan migrants. Jamal emphasized the need for coordination among host countries to address the challenges faced by migrants. Previously, the Human Rights Assembly had requested the UNHCR to send a delegation to Iran to address these issues.
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