The Iranian daily Jomhouri-e Eslami has warned that the growing presence of Afghan nationals in Iran, particularly undocumented migrants, poses not only economic challenges but also serious security risks.
Iran has repatriated about 1.6 million undocumented Afghan nationals since the launch of a nationwide return program about a year ago, while the total number of Afghans currently residing in the country is estimated at around five million, a senior Interior Ministry official said.
Approximately 1.8 million Afghan nationals have left Iran through the Dogharoon border, according to the deputy for security and law enforcement of Khorasan Razavi Province.
Approximately 500 Afghan nationals attempting to cross illegally into Iran are being detained and returned to Afghanistan each day this autumn, according to Amirollah Shamaghdari, the deputy governor of Khorasan Razavi for security and law enforcement affairs.
Iran’s Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni said that efforts were made to ensure no student was left behind amid the recent exit of foreign nationals, mainly Afghan citizens, who have increasingly come to Iran, especially after the Taliban takeover in 2021.
Iran’s Interior Ministry announced that around 320,000 foreign students have enrolled in Iranian schools for the 2025–2026 academic year, down from 700,000 last year, following the departure of nearly 280,000 Afghan students and their families as part of the government’s repatriation program.
Iran’s Ministry of Interior announced that the departure of undocumented foreign nationals from the country has reached nearly 1.45 million people in the first half of the current Iranian year, as part of an ongoing repatriation program primarily affecting Afghan nationals.
Iranian daily Jomhouri-e Eslami on Wednesday argued that Afghan nationals now make up roughly 12% of Iran’s population and called for continued expulsions of undocumented migrants, citing economic strain.
Tehran’s provincial authorities have announced the launch of a public reporting hotline as part of the Iranian government’s broader effort to regulate the presence of illegal Afghan migrants in the capital region.
Tehran’s governor has announced that since the beginning of this Persian year, 6 months ago, approximately 1.4 million illegal Afghan nationals have been deported from Iran.
Iran’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Amir Saeid Iravani, told a UN Security Council meeting on Afghanistan that the presence of millions of Afghan migrants has severely strained Iran’s resources and infrastructure, creating complex security and cross-border challenges.
Deputy Commander of Iran’s Law Enforcement Force Brigadier General Ghassem Rezaei says 1.2 million undocumented Afghan nationals have returned to Afghanistan since the beginning of this year.
More than 1.8 million undocumented Afghan migrants have left Iran since the start of the current administration in July last year, according to the Ministry of Interior’s Office for Foreign Nationals and Immigrants Affairs.
Iran’s interior minister has announced that more than 1.2 million undocumented Afghan nationals have left the country since the beginning of the Iranian year in March, with officials projecting that the figure could reach 2 million by year-end.
Iranian authorities have expelled more than 1.14 million undocumented foreign nationals so far this year, but around three million remain in the country, officials said.
Theft is the most common crime committed by illegal migrants in Tehran, according to the province's Judiciary Deputy for Social Affairs and Crime Prevention.
The once-crowded Afghan repatriation camp in eastern Tehran now sits noticeably empty, signaling a slowdown in the return of undocumented Afghan migrants from Iran.
Iran’s Deputy Interior Minister for Security and Law Enforcement, Majid Pourjamshidian, announced that authorized Afghan nationals will be allowed to participate in the upcoming Arbaeen pilgrimage, marking the 40th day after the martyrdom anniversary of the third Shia Imam, in Iraq under the same conditions as Iranian pilgrims.
The United Nations has announced that Taliban authorities are committing human rights violations, including torture and arbitrary detention, against Afghans forced to return by Iran and Pakistan.
The Tehran-based Jomhouri-e Eslami newspaper has published a strong editorial, backing the government’s decision to expel about 2 million undocumented Afghans.
The Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs' representative in Razavi Khorasan Province announced that the deadline for undocumented Afghan nationals to leave Iran has been extended to September 6, citing infrastructural challenges and extreme summer heat.
The Governor of the Afghan province of Herat bordering Iran, Noor Ahmad Islamjar, reaffirmed strong bilateral ties between Iran and Afghanistan during a visit to the Dogharoun border crossing, where he oversaw the return of a large number of Afghan nationals from Iran in recent months.
Iran’s Minister of Interior, Eskandar Momeni, announced that approximately 800,000 undocumented Afghan migrants have left the country since the beginning of the Persian calendar year in mid-March.