Afghanistan Peace Campaign
Iran’s social workers say authorities deport Afghan migrants without verifying legal status, citing cases of mistaken identity, family separation, and alleged abuse during mass expulsions.
The head of Iran’s Association of Social Workers, Hassan Mousavi Chelik, says officials have failed to distinguish between “legal” and “illegal” Afghan migrants during recent mass deportations.
He cited the case of an Iranian child mistakenly deported as an Afghan, whose identity was confirmed only after fingerprinting at the Iranian consulate, leading to his return.
Mousavi said some families were expelled because one member lacked residency papers, and in other cases, fathers were deported while their children remained in Iran.
Tehran governor Mohammad Sadeq Motamedian said that in the past 100 days, more than one million Afghans have been deported, including 400,000 from Tehran province.
Reports suggest some deportations involved violence, including a July case where an Afghan family alleged that Baqer Rezaei died under torture by Iranian officials at a Zabol detention camp.
Rights advocates warn that such practices risk separating families, violating human rights, and further straining relations between Iran and Afghanistan.
International monitoring has been urged to ensure deportations are conducted lawfully and humanely, with safeguards for vulnerable groups, especially children.