Iran enforces entry limits for Afghan refugees across 16 provinces

TEHRAN (Khaama Press): Iranian media have reported that the entry and residence of Afghan nationals have been prohibited in 16 provinces.

According to the ISNA news agency, Hamza Suleimani, the Director-General of Foreign Nationals and Immigrants Affairs in Kermanshah Province, has reported that undocumented immigrants in these provinces will be detained and deported.

The Governor of Kermanshah has announced that since March 2023, eight phases of a plan to identify, detain, and deport undocumented immigrants have been implemented in Kermanshah Province.

According to the report, entry, presence, and settlement in the provinces of East Azerbaijan, West Azerbaijan, Ardabil, Zanjan, Kurdistan, Kermanshah, Ilam, Lorestan, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari, Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad, Gilan, Mazandaran, Sistan and Baluchestan, Hormozgan, and Hamedan have been declared prohibited.

The report published on Saturday states that a considerable number of Afghan workers employed by Iranian employers have been detained.

This comes as two thousand Afghan migrants forcibly and voluntarily returned to their home country on Friday.

It’s worth noting that the expulsion of Afghan migrants and refugees from Pakistan and Iran has intensified in recent weeks.