HERAT -- The Iranian regime is continuing to ramp up deportations of Afghan refugees, even as winter approaches.
The number of Afghans deported from Iran since the beginning of November via the Islam Qala border crossing in Herat province has surpassed 4,000 people per day, nearly double the rate of earlier months, according to Abdullah Qayoumi, who is in charge of refugee affairs at Islam Qala crossing.
"The figures have doubled now as compared to one month ago," he told AFP this week, saying numbers leapt from 1,500–2,000 per day to 3,000–4,500.
"Iran has not announced [that it is deporting Afghans], but continuously there is no decline in our figures; they are only increasing day by day," Qayoumi said.
![In this photograph taken on November 4, a group of Afghan immigrants who were deported from Iran back to Afghanistan cross the border at the Islam Qala checkpoint in Herat province. [Omar/Salaam Times]](/cnmi_st/images/2023/11/09/44954-m_3-739_416.webp)
In this photograph taken on November 4, a group of Afghan immigrants who were deported from Iran back to Afghanistan cross the border at the Islam Qala checkpoint in Herat province. [Omar/Salaam Times]
The move comes as Pakistan also announced it would deport all illegally residing Afghans from its territory, Qayoumi told Salaam Times.
Pakistan has put that number at about 1.7 million.
"The mistreatment and torture of Afghan refugees at the hands of Iranian military have intensified significantly," said Qayoumi.
"Many refugees come to us with fractured arms and legs as they have been beaten by the Iranian police, and some have even lost their eyesight," he said. "The Iranian police, in violation of all international laws, torture Afghan refugees with utter brutality."
"Iranian authorities have repeatedly announced that they would deport Afghans living illegally in Iran, but some of the deported Afghans have passports and valid visas," Qayoumi added.
"Iranian police officers brutally tear up the passports and residence permits of refugees and deport them to Afghanistan."
Women and children who have been separated from their families and deported alone are among the Afghans who have returned from Iran, Qayoumi said.
Rafiullah Zaheri, 26, a resident of Sar-e-Pul province who was recently deported by the Iranian regime, was a laborer in Mazandaran province.
He said he was detained in the middle of the night alongside 10 others by police who subjected the group to torture and beatings.
"The Iranian police officers were very brutal. They tied us hand and foot and beat us so much," he said Saturday (November 4) in Islam Qala.
"They treated us like animals and were very violent. The police took our money and cell phones and fed us bread and water for two days and nights in the prison."
"There has been heightened pressure on refugees in the last couple of days. The police detain and beat Afghans wherever they find them," he added.
"Afghans cannot go out in Iran. They cannot even buy bread from bakeries."
Brutal night raids
Zaheri is not the only Afghan who was picked up by Iranian police in a night raid.
Abdul Ghafar, 26, who was recently deported from Iran and goes by his first name only, said that police detained him and his four friends at night while sleeping at 2am at his workplace and sent them to jail after severe torture.
"The police chained us hand and foot after detaining us in our sleep and beat us with hammers and iron bars. They kept us in detention for two days and nights and brutally mistreated us. They would not even give us bread and water, saying that we should die," he said.
"The detention of Afghans has intensified in recent days in Iran. It wasn't like this before, but now police enter the homes of Afghans at night and brutally beat them -- including children and women -- and deport them," he added. "Across the country, Iranian taxis do not give rides to Afghans, nor do bakeries sell them bread."
Life for Afghans has become very difficult across Iran lately, and it is impossible for them to stay there anymore, Ghafar said.
Omid, 23, another deported Afghan refugee, said he was denied medical attention after being beaten.
"We were asleep at night when the police raided our room. They first severely punched and kicked me and three of my roommates, then transferred us to a detention center," he said. "Part of my neck was torn up and was bleeding. I pleaded with them to take me to a hospital to stop the bleeding, but they ... instead moved to me a detention center."
"I am still injured and have to go to a hospital when I reach Herat city."
The Iranian police also seized all of the group's money, leaving them without a single afghani to make it home, Omid said.
Extortion by Iranian employers
Amid the surge of deportations, Iranian employers are turning over Afghans to authorities rather than paying overdue wages.
Sanaullah Karimi, 25, a resident of Takhar province who was recently deported from Iran, said that he worked on a construction site for two months.
Instead of paying his wages, his Iranian employer called the police on him.
"I worked so hard days and nights," he said, recalling that his employer owed him about $950 for his two months' work.
"When I asked my employer for my wages ... he called the police and had me deported," he said.
"Many Iranian employers cheat you. They do not pay Afghan workers," he added. "Employers take advantage of the heightened police pressure on refugees."
When the police picked him up, he had no chance to pick his cell phone, clothes and some cash at his workplace, Karimi said.
Juma Gul Hussaini, 27, a resident of Herat province who was also deported from Iran, had worked for a month in a factory in Esfahan city.
"When the police detained me at my workplace, I asked my employer for my wages," he said.
"He responded that I was working there illegally, so that I was not entitled to my wages. The police violently removed me from the factory and transferred me to the detention center."
"I had my Iranian residence card, but when I showed it to the police, they tore it up and detained me, saying that no Afghan has the right to live in Iran," he added.
According to a report of Tasnim International News Agency, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Pakistan announced in a statement regarding this morning's attacks on a border village near Saravan: This morning, Pakistan carried out a series of coordinated and specifically targeted military attacks against terrorist hideouts in Iran's Sistan and Baluchistan province. This statement also states: Pakistan fully respects the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The only purpose of today's attacks was to pursue Pakistan's security and national interests, which are important and cannot be compromised. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Pakistan also said: Iran is a brotherly country and the people of Pakistan have great respect and love for the people of Iran. We have always emphasized dialogue and cooperation in dealing with common challenges, including the threat of terrorism, and we will continue to find common solutions in dealing with terrorism. This country claimed in its official statement: During the past few years, Pakistan has continuously shared with Iran its serious concerns about terrorist bases of Pakistani origin. Pakistan also shared several cases with clear evidence of the presence and activities of these terrorists. Pakistan also wrote in a claim; however, due to the lack of action on our serious concerns, the "Sarmachar" terrorist group continued to spill the blood of Pakistanis. This morning, according to the reliable information of la
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Afghans calling Iran and Pakistan friends is like committing adultery with one's mother. These two neighboring countries are the main enemies of Afghans. I have heard that Afghan youth who went to Iran to work were not paid for their work. There was a time when Afghan laborers were warned that they would not be paid or be turned over to the authorities. At such a time, what would Afghan laborers say to the cruel and brutal Iranian man? They would certainly tell him not to give money but not to hand me over to the police. On social media, all the people have seen the videos of what Iranians are doing to Afghans!? The same is true in Pakistan. But the time for revenge will come, and when Afghans take revenge has come, they have given a blow that... We are saying to Iran and Pakistan that you have done everything to Afghans for the past 40 years, but mend your ways. Do not put Afghans to the test anymore. It is enough. For God's sake, stop it. Afghans have reached such a point that if the war against Iran and Pakistan starts, I am sure that millions of young people will join this war with passion and pride. Well, what then? We will inevitably spoil the exemplary lives of the citizens of these two neighboring countries. The good news is that these other countries should change their policies and let us live peacefully in our homeland; otherwise, we will have to deal with them one day.
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I am sorry that a few days ago, I wrote that compared to Iran, Pakistan is doing more injustice to Afghan refugees. Based on the following report from the Tand news website, which I am sharing with you for the information of the readers, I have come to know that both Iran and Pakistan are treating Afghans equally cruelly: (((While the media and people are paying a lot of attention to the mistreatment of Afghan refugees in Pakistan, violence and abuse of Afghan refugees continues in another neighboring country, Iran). Several Afghan refugees who were recently deported to Herat say that the Iranian forces kept them hungry, beat them in the respective camps, and deported them to Afghanistan along with their injured bodies. Some of these refugees also told the local media that the Iranian forces robbed them and took all their money and belongings from them. Mufti Adam Khan Saeed, head of the Taliban refugee agency in Herat, confirmed that Iran mistreated Afghan refugees. He considered the illegal migration of Afghan refugees to Iran as the reason for this behavior. Afghan refugees criticize the Taliban authorities for not paying attention to their problems. On the contrary, they praise the attitude of the mentioned country towards Afghan refugees for its political relations with Iran. Mullah Baradar Akhund, the economic deputy of the Taliban's prime minister, praised Iran's treatment of Afghan refugees during his visit to Iran last month. Khalil Ur Rehman Haqqani, the Minist
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The aid distribution process may not have been transparent, but it has benefited the current government of Afghanistan and saved the country from the liquidity crisis and managed financial stability in the market. With the arrival of the cold season and the reduction of foreign aids, Afghanistan is heading towards a major disaster. Poverty increases the flood of migrations. Reduction of foreign aids to Afghanistan cause an increment in poverty, and poverty causes the spread of various diseases. The negative consequences of reducing foreign aid in the coming years will be tangible and uncontrollable. With this description, economic experts want the Taliban to change their policy and draw the attention of aid organizations to Afghanistan in order to prevent the cutoff of foreign aid, which leads to an increment in the scope of poverty in the country.
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While poverty is rampant in the country and the scope of the economic crisis is widening day by day, the governments of Iran and Pakistan have increased the deportation of Afghan refugees, the foundations do not have enough money to help the needy people. Due to the fact that a difficult winter is ahead, lack of funds for aid organizations can make the country's economy worse. Experts in economic affairs inform about the unfortunate consequences of the reduction of foreign aid to Afghanistan and say that an economic disaster may occur in the country with the reduction of these aids. They want the government of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan to change its policy and draw the attention of aid organizations to the country, increase cooperation to its people, provide job opportunities for them, so that the economic problems of the people will be less and the flight of academic staffs and the young class that continue from the country be stopped. It is also worth mentioning that supporting children is also important, because children are the future of a country, but unfortunately, children in Afghanistan are in a dire situation, and instead of going to school, there are many families who force them to perform difficult tasks. Because of this, the future of Afghanistan will be dark, but if the Islamic Emirate and organizations helping children increase cooperation, these problems will be solved. Afghanistan has needed financial support in several past governments, and these huma
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The governments of Iran and Pakistan do not fear God at all, nor do they adhere to international immigration laws. With the repeated requests of international organizations, neither Pakistan nor Iran will back down from their work. According to the reports, Babar Baloch, the spokesperson of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Pakistan, asked the government of Islamabad to stop the process of deporting Afghan nationals during the cold and winter season, because according to him, the extreme cold in Afghanistan is deadly and lives may be lost. Meanwhile, the house-to-house search for Afghan refugees continues in Pakistan, so that Afghans without residency documents can be identified and deported from this country. In early October, Pakistan gave opportunity to all foreign immigrants without residency documents in the country, including 1.7 million Afghan citizens until November 1 to voluntarily leave the country, otherwise they would be arrested and forcibly deported after this date. According to the statistics provided by the Taliban and Pakistani officials about 400,000 Afghan citizens have been returned from Pakistan during the past few weeks. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees emphasizes that the return process of Afghan refugees should be voluntary and the government of Pakistan should identify and help vulnerable Afghan refugees who need international protection. The government of Pakistan has so far not responded positively to inter
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Yesterday morning, I heard on Taand's website that the Punjab government is demanding USD 830 per person from all Afghans who migrate overseas, in violation of all international, humanitarian, and Islamic norms. Pakistan, which is now facing severe economic and political difficulties, has openly resorted to robbery. However, the last law of closing the crossings and robbing was passed only for Afghans because the oppressed Afghans have no support in the world, and the Islamic Emirate of the Taliban does not defend them because they cannot say anything to Pakistan. Moreover, according to them, going to Western countries is considered an unforgivable sin. God bless the poor Afghans. But I can say with full courage that the present tragedy and sorrow will not last till the Day of Judgement. If the United Nations and the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan do not defend this oppressed nation, if Afghans living abroad do not support them, then the Afghans here cannot remain silent forever. One day, their voices will rock the world, and they will seize their rights with force. There will be no barbed border one day Nobody will recall the boundary or division Amu to Abasin, Herat to Chitral They will all sing the same anthem and be unified From Pashtun to Tajik to Hazara to Uzbek There will be one nation, and they will stick together as brothers and sisters. There will be no Pakistan or Afghanistan; instead, there will be a single country with a single army. There will be only one family
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Rafiullah Zaheri said, "the Iranian police officers were very brutal. They tied us hand and foot and beat us so much. They treated us like animals and were very violent. The police took our money and cell phones and fed us bread and water for two days and nights in the prison. There has been heightened pressure on refugees in the last couple of days. The police detain and beat Afghans wherever they find them. Afghans cannot go out of residences in Iran. Even they cannot buy bread from bakeries." For God's sake!!! Are they Muslims? Are they humans? No. Aren't they worse than those savage Jews who mercilessly bombard Gaza today, killing men, women, children, animals, dogs, donkeys...? Yes, they are. Alas for such a cruel and savage neighbor who lives next to us Afghans. Unfortunately, Afghanistan has two barbaric and miserable neighbors, Pakistan and Iran, who have not spared any oppression against Afghans during the past half century.
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Looking at Iran and Pakistan as friends is an idea and an obsession. Iran and Pakistan were Afghanistan's friends at the time the Soviet Union ran like a dragon and liberated Afghans. Dr. Ashraf Ghani used to say there are no eternal friends or foes in politics). The past several decades of insecurity in Afghanistan have proved that the insecurity of Afghan soil was perpetuated by those who created it and who continue to pursue it. Whenever the situation gets bad in Afghanistan, Afghans have begun to speak out and complain against Iran and Pakistan. They say that Pakistan is a Muslim country! The Iranians call themselves Muslims! That's not the case. The thing is, the British people came to Afghanistan and went back, the Russians came and went back, and the Americans came and left. The question is, what did the Afghans gain from these superpowers? But there is no doubt that, with the arrival of all the forces of power to Afghanistan, our neighbors, as well as invaders, plundered us. So, brothers and friends, the thing is, Afghans should no longer talk about Russia, China, America... Decades have passed since Pakistan and Iran have occupied Afghanistan. The most important thing is for Afghans to come together, accept each other, and form a strong central government, after which they can solve problems. If it doesn't happen, there is no point in complaining or blaming others. If anyone takes Afghan refugees out in the heat or cold, it depends on their country's policy, and that'
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Layeq Yousafzai With all due respect, I want to write that we are not children. We fully understand all aspects of political and intelligence scenarios. It is true that we are an [economically] poor and illiterate nation, but thanks to Allah there are still elites among us who understand the multi-dimensional aspects of the issues. You guys, I mean Salaam Times, are one of the American propaganda and intelligence tools that never published any of your reports against the interests and hypocritical policies of the West. You always attack Iran as your opponent in your reports. I am not an Iranian, I hate Iran and Pakistan like others do, but the conspiracies of forcing the immigrants out of Pakistan, which takes place in coordination with the United Kingdom and United States, has never been a humanitarian and humane issue according to Salaam Times. Most of the time, you ignored Pakistan's hostile and anti-human behavior and you never published any report against them on your website. For me, as an Afghan and a journalist, your impartiality is in question. You always violate the ethical and international standards of journalism and publish one-sided reports. You are always lurking about China and Russia. Despite the issues related to China, Russia and Iran appearing on your pages, you have a cautious and conservative attitude towards anti-humanity issues and Pakistan's intelligence conspiracy regarding Afghanistan. We are going through the oppression of Pakistan after the rise o
ReplyIt is true that Salaam Times often criticizes Iran's policies and does not mention Pakistan, but the truth is that not only Pakistan but also Iran was involved in the destruction of Afghanistan and the killing of Afghans and is still involved. We Afghans accept that Pakistan has been directly and indirectly involved in killing of and fighting against Afghans since almost 50 years ago, it has been involved in the destruction of schools, roads, bridges, hospitals, power lines... and other infrastructures. Pakistan has conscripted the refugees living in Pakistan's camps and used them to destroy Afghanistan in several stages. It is a fact that during the US-Soviet war in as the people of Afghanistan were victims of the Cold War, Pakistan gained many benefits and became the owner of weapons and even nuclear weapons. They got all this because of the sacrifices of Afghans who suffered for the interests of America. Pakistan forced the Afghan academic cadres to flee because they were excommunicated, and some of them were killed even in the occupied Afghanistan's territory (Pashtunkhwa), such as Dr. Bahauddin Majroh, Dr. Saadat Shaghiwal, Engineer Aziz Usman, Aziz Al Rahman Ulfat, Master Taj Muhammad... and others, that is, Pakistan continued its hostility towards Afghanistan as a legacy of Great Britain, but we must also remember that dirty Iran also killed and continues to kill Afghans. They sent thousands of Afghans to Syria and Iraq, where they were killed in aliens' wars. We well r
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Iran and Pakistan are both the common enemies of Afghanistan and Afghans and throughout history, they have carried with them the thoughts of destroying Afghanistan and Afghans. Based on these evil thoughts, they destroyed Afghanistan four times and swept away everything they had. Still, Pakistan is a much bigger beast country than Iran is, and it has played a 95% role in the destruction of Afghanistan. Iran is also not a human either, but because America is in conflict with it and Salaam Times is the website of the American Central Command, it is very conflicted with the Iranian regime, and it always publishes anti-Iranian news to make Afghans angry; however, Pakistan decided to deport 170,000 Afghan refugees, Salaam Times did not publish a single article, news, report or interview about it. The reason is that Pakistan is a child of Britain, and America is securing its interests with the beast Pakistan. The previous time, in 2021, when the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan collapsed, Pakistan showed its bastards at the behest of America, and even now, Pakistan is showing its bastards at the behest of America against the Taliban and has set its feet to destroy Afghanistan. In other words, if Pakistan gets even a small chance to destroy Afghanistan, it will never lose the chance. Still, we Afghans have always considered Pakistanis well in the name of religion, while Pakistani clerics and scholars are also sitting on US dollars. The Americans are turning them around like dogs by us
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The oppressive governments of Pakistan and Iran sent back refugees in this cold winter against all the principles of immigration, which is a great injustice that has happened to them and continues. We ask the United Nations and the International Organization for Migration to stop this cruelty. No immigrant family and the ruling system has a basis for the return of refugees to this country, and the arrival of so many refugees at once is a disaster for the ruling system and the returning refugees. The international community must question the ongoing crimes against Afghan refugees in Pakistan, something that has not been done so far in the right of anyone.
ReplyCountries whose foundations are based on religion have nothing but hatred in their hearts towards the followers of other religions.You see Pakistan, which was established by the Great Britain, and declared its slogan (What is the purpose of Pakistan - There is no God except Allah), it has hatred not only toward the followers of the Hindu religion, but also they have hatred toward Afghans and Afghanistan. Through this hatred they killed hundreds of thousands of Afghans in one name and another during the last fifty years.
ReplyAs can be seen from this report, Iran still uses hatred and malice against the followers of the Sunni religion and deports Afghan immigrants from their country. During a car collision in Iran, the dirty Iranians did not even give water to the Afghans who were riding in the said car and were burnt alive.
Another example is Israel, which killed thousands of innocent people, especially innocent children, during its blind bombing in a month and half. I have a Jewish friend. I told him why your soldiers are killing innocent Palestinian children? He said that this is just the propaganda of the western media, but at the same time he said that the land Israel is in is their homeland and Arabs have no right to live there. This is despite the fact that in 1933, the same Jews who are killing the Palestinians went to Palestine as immigrants and moved there. That is, if Israel is allowed, after killing Muslims, they will start killing the Christians as well.
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Both Pakistan and Iran should not have expelled the Afghan refugees from their country in this cold winter. In this cold winter, when most of the refugees are not familiar with the cold weather of Afghanistan, and they are not fully prepared for the cold weather of the winter, it is very difficult for the refugees who came from Pakistan to Afghanistan. Most of the refugees who came to Afghanistan from Pakistan have a weak economy and most of them do not even have a house in Afghanistan and it is very difficult to find rental houses in Kabul. It is very difficult to live in a tent in this cold winter. Pakistan expelled Afghan refugees from its soil with great disrespect, which cannot be forgiven. This is a great injustice done by Pakistan against the Afghan refugees. Afghans should also understand that they should not destroy their homeland with the orders of other countries. Even if we live in a place for a hundred years, others' country will never be ours, our identity will still remain Afghan. As long as our homeland is stable, the economy is strong, the level of our knowledge is high, and we are self-sufficient, then we will be respected in other countries of the world. If we are illiterate, if we don't have a strong economy, our homeland is ruined, we have no place to spend the night in any corner of the world. It is still early. Let's rebuild our ruined homeland. We have everything, if we are loyal to our homeland, maybe our homeland will be considered one of the best cou
ReplyYou criticize the hypocrite Pakistan and Iran for expelling Afghan immigrants from their countries in this cold winter. They are neither Muslim nor committed to humanity, so there is nothing to worry about. Now shelter and food must be provided for these Afghan families. The rest of the country should be able to protect themselves and develop the country.
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