RASC News Agency: Sky News has unveiled the systemic brutality and inhumane treatment inflicted upon Afghanistani migrants by Iranian authorities during mass deportations, exposing a humanitarian crisis of staggering proportions. Migrants returning to Afghanistan face not only physical abuse and humiliation at the hands of Iranian police but also the compounded effects of the Taliban’s oppressive policies at home, which leave millions with no legal employment, education, or social protection.
According to the report, over 1.3 million Afghanistani citizens have been forcibly expelled from Iran this year alone. Many of the returnees recounted violent and degrading treatment during detention, describing beatings, verbal assaults, and arbitrary confinement. These migrants had initially sought refuge in Iran to secure basic livelihoods and sustain their families, fleeing the desperation and systemic failures entrenched under Taliban rule. Instead, they encountered a relentless cycle of exploitation, coercion, and physical abuse, culminating in forced repatriation under conditions that jeopardize their safety and dignity.
During the peak of these operations, Iran reportedly returned more than 28,000 individuals in a single day via the Islam-Qala border crossing, reflecting the sheer scale of the humanitarian crisis.
The plight of unaccompanied children is particularly harrowing. Many minors were trafficked into Iran without parental supervision, living in unsafe and exploitative conditions. These children were often compelled to work long hours to repay debts to smugglers, enduring both physical hardship and deep psychological trauma.
One poignant example is 15-year-old Taher, who supports six siblings and two parents. Taher recounted spending 16 days in detention, during which he endured repeated beatings, yet he feels compelled to return to Iran to earn a living. Speaking of his predicament, he said:
“I love Afghanistan and would give my life for it, but when there is no work in my own country, how can I survive? My family depends on me, and I must work.”
This testimony illustrates a grim reality: thousands of Afghanistani migrants, men, women, and children alike, risk everything to escape poverty and conflict, only to face cycles of abuse, humiliation, and forced displacement in transit countries, compounded by the Taliban’s systematic neglect of economic opportunities and social protections within Afghanistan.
Experts emphasize that these mass deportations not only violate international human rights standards and refugee protection laws but also exacerbate regional instability and the humanitarian crisis. Vulnerable populations particularly children separated from families, women exposed to exploitation, and adults with no access to legal employment face profound threats to their physical, mental, and social well-being.
The crisis also starkly exposes the Taliban’s role in perpetuating suffering. By denying girls access to education, restricting women from formal employment, and dismantling social safety nets, the Taliban ensure that millions of Afghanistani citizens remain trapped in poverty and compelled to migrate under hazardous conditions, making them vulnerable to abuse and exploitation abroad.
Sky News’ report offers a bleak portrait of a generation whose prospects are systematically undermined by both hostile policies abroad and a predatory regime at home. Without decisive international intervention and sustained pressure on the Taliban to uphold basic human rights and provide meaningful opportunities, this humanitarian disaster is likely to deepen, leaving Afghanistani children, families, and entire communities in persistent cycles of deprivation, fear, and forced displacement.
