Islamic Emirate Appeals to Citizens to Stay in Afghanistan

Zabihullah Mujahid, the spokesperson for the Islamic Emirate, urged Afghan citizens to refrain from illegal migration, emphasizing the government’s ongoing efforts to create job opportunities and improve the domestic economy.

Mujahid said: “Afghans should not try to leave the country. Many of our migrants in Iran have returned to their homeland. On the other hand, the Islamic Emirate is making serious efforts to create employment opportunities and improve the country’s economy to address the people’s economic challenges.”

Earlier, some Iranian media outlets, quoting officials, reported that Iran has expelled over 1.5 million illegal migrants in the past year.

“Over the past year, we have expelled more than 1.5 million undocumented individuals from cities and villages and started biometric and technical processes, such as fingerprinting, to prevent these individuals from returning under different identities,” the report reads.

Abdullah, a resident of Takhar province, who has been to Iran six times and faced harsh treatment before being deported, is once again preparing to leave for Iran to provide for his five-member family. Abdullah told : “This is the seventh time I am going to Iran. Each time, I get deported. We stay for five or six months, and then they beat us and send us back to Afghanistan. I have five children, and I am forced to go to Iran again for work.”

Fatima, a returnee from Iran, told : “Despite having legal documents, there is a lot of pressure. For instance, even I, who was born there, face difficulties—let alone those without documents.”

Previously, the Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation reported that more than 900,000 Afghan migrants have returned from Iran, Pakistan, and Turkey over the past eight months.