Foreigners Entered Iran With Sabotage Intent, Says Interior Minister

In its weekly update, the IOM said a total of 88308 Afghan nationals were returned during that period. However, due to limited resources, the organisation was only able to provide assistance to 11 percent of them.

The IOM appealed for urgent funding to address the critical protection and humanitarian needs of returnees, warning that current support capacities are insufficient to meet the scale of need.

According to the report, 55 percent of those returned last week were forcibly deported, while 64 percent were part of family units.

The organisation also highlighted a sharp increase in deportations from Iran. In the previous week, from 12 to 18 June, 32844 Afghans were returned, less than half the number recorded in the latest reporting period.

Separately, the World Health Organization (WHO) stated that more than 71000 Afghans had returned from Iran and Pakistan between 1 and 14 June.

Looking ahead, the IOM has projected that in 2025, around 2 million Afghans could return from Iran and more than 1.6 million from Pakistan, underscoring the need for sustained international support to manage the growing crisis.

In a post on the social media platform X on Friday, Huizenga responded to Mujahid’s denial of his earlier claims regarding the presence of terrorist groups in Afghanistan.

“These statements made by Mr. Mujahid are as illegitimate as the government he claims to represent,” Huizenga wrote. “This is yet another example of why I believe the US government should stop sending taxpayer dollars to Afghanistan and why I have introduced legislation to stop taxpayer dollars from funding the Taliban.”

The remarks follow Huizenga’s statements during a recent hearing of the US House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on South and Central Asia, where he argued that the Biden administration’s rapid withdrawal from Afghanistan had dramatically altered the regional threat landscape.

He warned that terrorist groups, including ISIS-Khorasan and Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), are expanding their capabilities and pose a growing risk to regional and global security.

In response, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid insisted that the Taliban-led government is strong, maintains full control over Afghan territory, and does not allow any group to use Afghan soil to launch attacks against other nations.

The exchange underscores growing tensions between the Taliban and US lawmakers, particularly amid the US House of Representatives’ recent passage of a bill aimed at preventing American taxpayer funds from reaching terrorist organisations.

The Taliban, which remains unrecognised by the United States and most of the international community, has repeatedly claimed that it is committed to ensuring Afghanistan does not become a base for extremist activities. However, no US officials and independent analysts continue to express concerns over the country’s security trajectory since the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021.

Taliban officials said more than 100000 Afghans have crossed through Islam Qala in recent days, including about 61000 on Wednesday and Thursday alone. Eyewitnesses told Afghanistan International on Friday that the line of returnees waiting to enter the country stretches for kilometres.

‘When the Iran-Israel war began, we were due to return to Afghanistan, but everything was delayed,’ said Mohammad Samim, one of the returnees. ‘Now, with our legal deadline expired, we have to leave Iran.’

Migrants complained of overcrowding, limited services and slow distribution of aid. Sayed Tariq, another returnee, said international organisations are providing only 2,000 Afghanis per person, money he described as insufficient for families arriving with no shelter or supplies.

The Taliban said medical teams, Red Crescent staff, and officials from the migration office have been deployed to register arrivals and distribute hot meals and cash grants. Aid groups, however, warn the border’s infrastructure is too limited to handle the current influx.

An Iranian diplomatic delegation including Ambassador Alireza Bikdeli, deputy ambassador Seyyed Hassan Mortazavi and Herat consul-general Alireza Marhamati visited Islam Qala on Friday. The trip came one day after Taliban foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi urged Tehran to slow the pace of deportations.

Iran began stepped-up crackdowns on undocumented migrants during its recent 12-day conflict with Israel, arresting Afghans in workplace and neighbourhood raids and confiscating their mobile phones on alleged national security grounds. Tehran has not publicly explained the phone seizures.

Aid agencies say many returnees arrive with little more than the clothes they are wearing. With summer temperatures soaring and local resources stretched, relief groups warn that shelter, water and sanitation are urgently needed to prevent a wider humanitarian emergency at the crossing.

Local Taliban officials in Herat have appealed for additional international assistance, warning that without a rapid scale-up of services, tens of thousands of returnees could be left stranded.

Sources from multiple Iranian cities told Afghanistan International that uniformed and plainclothes police have intensified inspections of Afghan migrants, particularly following the recent 12-day conflict between Iran and Israel. The heightened crackdown follows a nationwide security sweep in which 700 Iranian citizens were arrested on charges of espionage and collaboration with Israel.

At least five Afghan nationals have reportedly been detained on similar charges. Iranian state media have broadcast videos showing some of the detained Afghans confessing to alleged collaboration with Israel, although the conditions under which these confessions were obtained remain unclear.

In recent days, police have raided workplaces and homes of Afghan migrants, seizing both smartphones and basic mobile phones. Migrants reported that officers without providing official explanations issued slips instructing them to collect their phones from police stations at a later date, sometimes after several weeks.

A migrant in Tehran said on Thursday, 26 June, that his phone and those of several other Afghans were confiscated at a metro station by law enforcement officers. Another source said security forces entered their workplace and seized phones regardless of whether the individuals held legal residency permits.

“Officers took all phones, both smart and basic, from Afghans regardless of their documentation status and told them they could retrieve the devices after one month,” the source said.

Public places such as metro stations have also become focal points for inspections, with migrants reporting increased scrutiny and questioning. So far, Iranian officials have not publicly commented on the reasons for confiscating migrants’ phones or the broader campaign targeting Afghan nationals.

In addition to phone seizures, arrests and deportations of Afghan migrants have surged. A source in Tehran told Afghanistan International on Friday, 27 June, that the number of police checkpoints has dramatically increased across the city. Afghan nationals, both documented and undocumented, are reportedly being detained at these checkpoints.

Mohammad Sadegh Motamedian, the governor of Tehran Province, recently acknowledged that the rate of arrest and deportation of Afghan migrants has tripled or quadrupled in recent weeks.

Local Taliban officials in Afghanistan have also reported a sharp increase in returns. Ahmadullah Muttaqi, head of the Taliban’s information and culture directorate in Herat, said that more than 30000 Afghan migrants crossed back into Herat from Iran on Wednesday, 25 June alone.

Observers say the current climate has left many Afghan migrants in Iran afraid to leave their homes, go to work, or even access basic services, as fears of arrest, deportation, or harassment continue to mount.

His visit has drawn attention on social media, where images showed him being received by a number of Afghan religious scholars upon his arrival in the capital.

It remains unclear whether Ismaeelzahi’s trip was made at the invitation of the Taliban government or organised independently by religious figures.

Ismaeelzahi, widely regarded as the most influential Sunni leader in Iran, has been a vocal critic of the Islamic Republic, especially on issues concerning religious freedom and the rights of Sunni Muslims and other minorities.

Following the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021, Ismaeelzahi initially welcomed the development, describing it as a “great and remarkable victory.” At the time, he expressed cautious optimism about the group's transformation over the past two decades, stating: “I assure the world that today’s Taliban are not the Taliban of 20 years ago; they have gained experience and their views have evolved. Even if there are shortcomings, they can be corrected.”

However, he later issued strong criticism of the Taliban’s policies, particularly the ban on girls’ education. In a Friday sermon, he questioned the religious justification behind such measures, asking: “By what religious authority have you banned girls from studying?”

He continued: “When I said the Taliban are not the same as they were 20 years ago and have changed, some objected to my view. I still believe they’ve changed, but no one should prevent women from getting an education. Universities must be open to women.”