Iranian Interior Minister Ahmad Vahid told reporters on Wednesday that dealing with the issue of migrants and refugees is a priority for the authorities.
Vahidi, however, rejected the statistics published in Iranian media on the number of Afghan refugee population in the country, saying the number of refugees from Afghanistan is less than five million.
Iranians say the influx of refugees after the takeover of the Taliban in neighboring Afghanistan is posing a security challenge for Iran.
They also complain that the refugees are straining the country’s shrinking resources amid crippling Western sanctions.
In recent months, Iranian newspapers have warned of the security repercussions of the growing number of Afghan nationals entering the country, as there are concerns about radicalization among Afghan refugees.
Vahidi also dismissed reports by the Israeli media that a tremor felt on Monday 35km from Iran’s western Ilam Province, bordering Iraq, was caused by a missile attack on an Iranian military base, saying it was caused by an earthquake.
