‘Over 4 Million Afghan Refugees Ordered to Leave Iran or Face Arrest,’ Says Iranian Government

‘Over 4 Million Afghan Refugees Ordered to Leave Iran or Face Arrest,’ Says Iranian Government

Tehran | July 6, 2025
The Iranian government has ordered millions of Afghan refugees and migrants residing in the country to leave voluntarily by Sunday or face arrest. The decision follows a recent 12-day conflict with Israel and heightened national security concerns. However, human rights groups warn that such mass expulsions could further destabilize the already fragile situation in Afghanistan.

Approximately 4 million Afghan refugees and migrants currently live in Iran, many of whom have been there for decades.
In 2023, Iran began cracking down on foreigners it claims are residing illegally. In March of this year, Tehran announced that Afghans without legal residency permits must leave voluntarily by Sunday or face forced deportation.

Since then, more than 700,000 Afghans have already left, and several hundred thousand more remain at risk of expulsion. According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), over 230,000 Afghans left Iran just in the month of June.

While Iranian authorities insist their focus is not solely on “illegal” migrants, they acknowledge that many of these Afghans fled war, poverty, and the Taliban regime.

Batoul Akbari, a restaurant owner in Tehran, told Al Jazeera:
“The growing hostility toward Afghans living in Iran is heartbreaking. These people are being forced out of the only home they've known all their lives.”
She added, “Being born in Iran gives us a sense of two homelands. Our parents came from Afghanistan, but we were born and raised here.”

Mohammad Nasim Mazaheri, an Afghan student, said, “My family had to leave Iran. This forced deportation has torn many families apart.”

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reports that during the Israel-Iran conflict, Iran was deporting an average of 30,000 Afghans per day—compared to just 2,000 daily before the war.

Iranian government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani said on Tuesday:
“We have always shown hospitality, but national security is our priority. Therefore, undocumented individuals must return to their country.”

Last month, UNHCR noted that of the 1.2 million Afghans who recently returned home, more than half came back from Iran after the March 20 deadline.
Arafat Jamal, UNHCR’s representative in Afghanistan, said:
“They are arriving by bus—sometimes five buses at a time with families. When they get off, they are shocked, disoriented, exhausted, and hungry.”

He added, “While the war has worsened the situation, this is part of a longer-term trend. Some returns are voluntary, but a large portion is forced deportation.”

Al Jazeera reporter Resul Serdar, reporting from Tehran, noted that Afghans are increasingly being blamed for Iran’s economic crisis, supply shortages, and social issues.
He said, “These accusations have been inflamed by political rhetoric and online content, especially after the Iran-Israel conflict, with claims emerging that Israel has recruited Afghans as spies.”