Taliban Confirms Afghan Migrant Deaths At Iran Border
Taliban officials in western Afghanistan have confirmed the deaths of several Afghan migrants while attempting to cross the border into Iran, following reports by Afghanistan International.
Taliban officials in western Afghanistan have confirmed the deaths of several Afghan migrants while attempting to cross the border into Iran, following reports by Afghanistan International.
Mohammad Yousuf Saeedi, spokesperson for the Taliban governor in Herat, said three Afghan nationals died near the Kahsan border area while attempting what he described as “illegal migration to Iran.” He told the Taliban-run Bakhtar News Agency on Friday that investigations are under way and that local authorities and emergency teams have been deployed to assist those affected.
Earlier, local sources in Herat told Afghanistan International that a group of Afghan migrants had died inside Iranian territory after being exposed to severe cold while travelling toward Iran. According to those sources, the bodies of at least 15 people were transferred to Kahsan and Adraskan districts in Herat province.
However, Afghanistan International also spoke with an Afghan migrant who had visited the morgues at the Shuhada Cemetery and Taybad Hospital in Iran’s Razavi Khorasan province. That individual said the number of Afghan migrants who died could exceed 40.
Sources further reported that several Afghan migrants have gone missing along the Iran border. In recent days, hundreds of Afghans are said to have headed toward the border in an attempt to reach Iran, but encountered extreme cold weather en route.
According to these accounts, the migrants were trying to enter Iran through unofficial and smuggling routes from Islam Qala toward Taybad. Weather conditions in the border areas have been reported as snowy, rainy and extremely cold. Families of the victims are reportedly searching for the bodies of their relatives.
The exact number of casualties remains unclear.
In recent months, the Taliban have reported the arrest of hundreds of Afghans accused of attempting to migrate illegally to Iran. Following mass deportations of Afghan migrants from Iran and tighter visa restrictions, many Afghans have resorted to dangerous and irregular routes in an effort to return to Iran.
