RASC News Agency: The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported that in the past week, 564 Afghanistani refugee families were returned from Iran to Afghanistan. The agency’s statement, issued on Sunday, November 3, clarified that these returns included both forced and voluntary repatriations. The UNHCR statement detailed that, on average, 81 Afghanistani families are deported daily from Iran.
Furthermore, it noted that 40% of the heads of these returning families are women, while 54% of those returning are children under the age of 18, highlighting the vulnerability of those affected. Since the beginning of this year, UNHCR data indicates that a total of 50,799 Afghanistani refugees comprised of 25,603 women and 25,196 men have returned from Iran. The steady rise in deportations reflects an intensification of forced repatriations of Afghanistani refugees by both Pakistan and Iran over the last two years.
Last month, UNHCR also disclosed that more than 574,000 Afghanistani refugees were repatriated from Iran and Pakistan during the first half of this year alone. Recently, Iranian officials stated plans to expel an additional two million Afghanistani refugees by year’s end. Since the Taliban’s return to power, millions of Afghanistani citizens have fled the country to escape ethnic, linguistic, and religious persecution, along with widespread unemployment and poverty, seeking refuge in neighboring states.
