Afghanistan Peace CampaignMeanwhile, the UN Women stated in a report that women and girls make up nearly half of the migrants deported from neighboring countries.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has warned that Afghanistan is facing one of the largest waves of forced deportations of migrants from neighboring countries, with 1.5 million individuals deported and returned to the country in this calendar year alone.
The organization, referring to Pakistan’s decision to continue deporting Afghan migrants, added that without international support, Afghanistan will face a serious crisis.
Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General, said: “International Organization for Migration is urgently calling for international support as Afghanistan faces one of the largest return movements in recent history. Since September 2023, more than 4 million Afghans have returned from Iran and Pakistan, with over 1.5 million returning in 2025 alone.”
Meanwhile, the UN Women stated in a report that women and girls make up nearly half of the migrants deported from neighboring countries.
The UN agency added that deported women and girls face threats such as poverty, early marriage, violence, and unprecedented restrictions upon their return to Afghanistan.
The UN Deputy Spokesperson added: “Women and girls represent 1/3 of returnees from Iran so far in 2025 and about half of all returnees from Pakistan. The report voiced that, like all women and girls in Afghanistan, returnee women and girls face increased risks of poverty, early marriage, violence, exploitation and unprecedented restrictions on their rights, movements and freedoms.”
In response to the UN’s concerns about the situation of deported women, the caretaker government said that all the rights of these and other women in Afghanistan are being protected and dismissed the concerns as unfounded.
Hamdullah Fitrat, Deputy Spokesperson for the Islamic Emirate, said: “The Islamic Emirate has prevented any form of forced marriage and Bad Dadan (“giving away a daughter,” which typically involves settling a dispute between families or tribes by marrying off a girl from one family to a man from the other.), Women are given inheritance rights, their voices are heard, their cases are processed in courts, and especially the complaints section of the Ministry of Vice and Virtue has addressed thousands of women’s complaints.”
Tafsir Siyahposh, a women’s rights activist, said: “Today we all witness that unfortunately, the opportunities that were available to women returning from abroad are not available in Afghanistan. But we are still trying to persuade the Islamic Emirate government to consider the rights and freedoms of women.”
Concerns over the consequences of mass deportation of Afghan migrants from neighboring countries come at a time when forced deportations from Iran and Pakistan continue intensively.
The issue of women’s education and employment, which has been a major point of criticism from the international community, remains unresolved.