8 Million Afghans Have Left Their Homeland Since Doha Agreement
The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) has reported that nearly eight million Afghan citizens have fled their homeland since 2020.
The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) has reported that nearly eight million Afghan citizens have fled their homeland since 2020.
According to the IOM, approximately one million of these Afghans have sought asylum in European countries, while 85% have migrated to neighbouring nations.
On February 29, 2020, the United States signed a peace agreement with the Taliban in Doha, Qatar. Critics argue that this agreement paved the way for the collapse of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and the Taliban's subsequent takeover of Kabul.
In a recent report, the IOM highlighted that since the Taliban assumed power in August 2021, Afghanistan has experienced significant economic inflation, with over half the population living in poverty.
The report indicates that around 70% of Afghans migrating to Iran cite a lack of job opportunities as their primary reason for leaving. The IOM also noted a substantial number of returnees from Iran, with nearly one million Afghans returning to their homeland in 2023, 70% of whom lacked residency documents.
The IOM stressed that many Afghan citizens, facing challenges in obtaining passports and visas, resort to illegal means of migration, often paying human traffickers to cross borders.
The report emphasises the increased risk of human rights violations for Afghans without travel documents, both at border crossings and in neighbouring countries. The IOM noted that these individuals frequently endure "cruel, inhuman, and degrading" treatment.
In light of these issues, the IOM has called on countries to suspend the deportation of Afghan migrants until conditions for a "safe, dignified, and voluntary" return are established.
This appeal comes as Pakistan and Iran have intensified the deportation of undocumented Afghan migrants in recent months. According to data from the Taliban's Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation, over a thousand Afghan migrants are expelled daily from these two countries.
