Afghanistan Peace CampaignThese migrants, who were attempting to enter Iran illegally, encountered an ambush, and it is said that they were attacked with both light and heavy weapons.
According to reports, dozens of Afghan citizens have been killed in a shooting at Kalagan, the center of Saravan in Sistan and Baluchestan.
Some eyewitnesses of the incident and an Iranian human rights organization have said that from a group of 300 Afghan migrants, around 50 people have survived.
These migrants, who were attempting to enter Iran illegally, encountered an ambush, and it is said that they were attacked with both light and heavy weapons.
In videos released from this event, it can be seen that the bodies of victims and the wounded lie on the ground in mountainous areas without any medical facilities.
“We were ambushed at the Kalagan border. There were 300 of us, and about 270 to 280 were killed. Maybe 50 to 60 people survived, and the rest were all martyred. Ten to twelve of my friends were also martyred,” said an eyewitness of the incident.
The Iranian Human Rights Organization said that from the group of 300 Afghan migrants, only 50 have survived. According to this organization, Iranian border guards had set up an ambush against the Afghan migrants during the night and attacked them with light and heavy weapons, including RPG rockets.
“Iran, as a neighboring and fellow-language country, kills Afghans in this way, and it is truly unethical. All Muslims and the people of Herat condemn this incident,” Jaber, a resident of Herat, told TOLOnews.
“This is a very cruel and wrongful act against Afghans. Afghans go to Iran as laborers,” said Ramin, another resident of Herat.
According to some civil society activists, the attack on Afghan migrants is a crime against humanity, and the perpetrators must be brought to justice.
“Shedding the blood of Afghan citizens, whose aim in migrating is to escape poverty and earn a piece of bread, is considered a crime against humanity and requires prosecution in international courts. A country does not have the right to treat migrants as if they are invaders and to gun them down. Certainly, this action by Iranian border guards counts as a crime against humanity,” Seyed Ashraf Sadat, a civil society activist, told TOLOnews.
This comes at a time when, in recent months, the expulsion of Afghan migrants from Iran has intensified, and there have been frequent reports of police mistreatment of migrants in that country.