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As many as 147 Afghan refugees returned from Iran through the Islamqala border in eastern Herat province, Khaama Press reported citing the department of Refugees and Repatriation.
According to the Taliban border official, out of those 147 Afghan refugees, 67 were referred to the International Organization for Migration (IOM) to receive food and other basic requirements. Over the past weeks, the Taliban's Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation has repeatedly reported on the return of Afghan citizens from Iran. Some of these refugees have been forcefully deported, and others willingly left Iran, according to a statement by Taliban officials. Earlier, the Taliban-appointed Refugees and Repatriation department announced that over 2,000 Afghan refugees had returned back to its nation from Iran and Pakistan, according to Khaama Press. Taking to Twitter, the Refugees, and Repatriation department, said that 1851 Afghan refugees from Iran and 331 others from Pakistan returned home through Spin Boldak and Islamqala crossing points. The department further revealed that out of 331 refugees, 70 are the ones who were released from Pakistani prisons following the mediation of the Afghan Embassy in Islamabad. Since the Taliban's return to power in August 2021, thousands of Afghans fled Afghanistan to the neighbouring countries fearing persecution and death threats. Most of these people entered host countries through illegal channels, now facing serious problems including forceful deportation and imprisonment. Over the past months, the Iranian government has taken serious measures to deal with undocumented Afghan refugees in the host country. They have been continuously incarcerating and forcefully deporting Afghan nationals to Afghanistan through Islamqala and Abrishum crossing points. In February, the Taliban authorities of the Refugee and Repatriation Department of Nimruz province also said Iran deported 7,612 Afghan refugees back to their homeland over the last week, the Khaama Press reported. The director of the Refugees and Repatriation Department of Nimruz province, Sediqullah Nasrat, on Sunday said many of them, who were in dire straits financially, had received cash from the International Organization for Migration (IOM), a United Nations agency, to facilitate migration. (ANI)
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