In a sweeping move described as one of the largest forced population displacements in recent history, Iran has expelled over 1.1 million Afghan migrants so far in 2025, with more than half a million deported in just the 16 days following the end of a 12-day conflict with Israel. This comes just two years after Pakistan expelled Afghani citizens as well.
The Iranian government, citing national security concerns and unsubstantiated claims of Afghan espionage, has intensified its campaign to remove an estimated 4 million undocumented Afghans from the country by a July 6 deadline. This mass expulsion has triggered a humanitarian crisis, particularly for women and children, who face extreme repression and destitution under Taliban rule in Afghanistan.
Scale and Speed of Deportations
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) reports that between June 24 and July 9, 508,426 Afghans crossed the Iranian-Afghanistan border, with daily peaks reaching 51,000. Since June 1, over 546,000 undocumented Afghans have been forcibly returned, overwhelming border facilities like Islam Qala in Herat province, where temperatures soar to 104°F (40°C). The UN warns that Afghanistan, grappling with severe drought and a collapsing economy, is “wholly unprepared” to absorb this influx, with 70% of its population living at subsistence levels.
Iran’s deportation program, announced in March, initially targeted undocumented migrants but has escalated dramatically since the conflict with Israel. State media has fueled anti-Afghan sentiment by broadcasting unverified claims of Afghan migrants spying for Israel, including a televised confession from an alleged spy who claimed to have provided location data for $2,000. Critics argue these accusations lack evidence and serve as a pretext for Iran to deflect internal dissent onto a vulnerable minority.
Plight of Women and Children
The deportations have disproportionately impacted women and children, many of whom face dire circumstances upon return to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. The Taliban’s strict laws, described as “gender apartheid” by human rights groups, prohibit women from working, traveling without a male guardian (mahram), or accessing education beyond primary levels. Unaccompanied women, including at least 100 deported through Nimroz province between March and May, are particularly vulnerable, often stranded at border crossings due to these restrictions.
Sahar, a 40-year-old widow from Baghlan, shared her ordeal with The Guardian and Zan Times. After living in Iran for over a decade and running a tailoring workshop, she was detained with her five children near Shiraz and deported without time to gather belongings. “They came in the middle of the night. I begged them to give me just two days to collect my things. But they didn’t listen. They threw us out like garbage,” she said. With no male guardian, Sahar was denied land or assistance by the Taliban, leaving her with no clear path to survival.
Children, who make up approximately 25% of deportees, face similar hardships. Parisa, an 11-year-old deported with her family, told CNN she was barred from attending school in Iran, signaling their expulsion. In Afghanistan, Taliban restrictions on girls’ education mean she has little hope of continuing her studies. The IOM reported 400 unaccompanied or separated children among last week’s returnees, highlighting the scale of the crisis.
Harsh Conditions and Allegations of Abuse
Returnees describe brutal treatment during the deportation process. Bashir, a young Afghan man, told CNN he was detained in Tehran, extorted for 12 million tomans (approximately $250), and held in a detention center without food or water, where he and others were beaten. Sahar recounted paying exorbitant prices for basic necessities like water and sandwiches during the journey from Shiraz to the border. Others reported verbal abuse and mockery from Iranian authorities, with one woman, Zahra, noting that her child’s cries from the heat were met with laughter from a bus driver.
Conditions at border crossings are dire, with thousands waiting for processing under scorching heat, often without shelter, food, or water. Local officials report at least 13 deaths in the past two weeks, though it remains unclear whether these resulted from heat, thirst, or injuries sustained during Israel’s airstrikes in Iran. Aid agencies, including the IOM and UNHCR, provide limited support such as food, medical kits, and temporary shelters, but lack the resources for long-term reintegration. The UN’s 2025 Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan for Afghanistan, requiring $2.42 billion, is only 22.2% funded, exacerbating the crisis.
Personal Stories of Despair
Among the deportees is Bamin Bahmani, a 29-year-old former teacher and Kabul University graduate who fled Afghanistan after her arrest for protesting against the Taliban in 2022. Having joined her husband in Iran with their infant son, she gave birth to a second child in May 2025. Now, with their visas expired and Iranian police seizing her husband’s phone and passport, the family lives in hiding, fearing deportation. “We dare not go out,” Bahmani told The Sunday Times. “We have nowhere to go in Afghanistan. The Taliban will arrest us.”
The expulsions are not limited to Iran. Pakistan, hosting about 4 million Afghans, has deported 323,581 this year, with plans to expel 3 million more. The combined pressure from both countries has led to over 1.6 million Afghan returns in 2025, with UNHCR predicting up to 3 million by year’s end. This massive influx threatens to destabilize Afghanistan, where poverty, unemployment, and Taliban repression create an untenable environment for returnees.
International Condemnation and Calls for Action
The deportations have drawn sharp criticism from human rights advocates. Richard Bennett, the UN’s special rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan, condemned Iran’s actions, stating on X: “Hundreds of Afghans & members of ethnic & religious minorities detained #Iran accused of ‘espionage.’ Also reports of incitement to discrimination & violence in the media labelling Afghans & minority communities as traitors & using dehumanising language.” The Center for Human Rights in Iran called the deportations “an egregious violation of international law,” emphasizing that forced returns to a country with systematic persecution, particularly of women and girls, are unconscionable.
Despite Iran’s claim that it targets only undocumented migrants, many deportees, like Parisa’s family, held legal census documents but were expelled regardless. Iran’s deputy interior minister, Ali Akbar Pourjamshidian, insisted that Afghans are “respected neighbors and brothers in faith,” but maintained that the country’s “capacities have limits.” Meanwhile, the Taliban’s claims of providing shelter and transport to returning women are contradicted by deportees who report receiving no assistance.
A Growing Humanitarian Emergency
The mass deportation of Afghans from Iran and Pakistan underscores a growing humanitarian emergency. Afghanistan, already reeling from decades of war, faces entrenched poverty, climate-related shocks, and a deteriorating human rights situation. Women activists and former government employees risk retaliation from the Taliban, while girls face an end to education and basic freedoms. The UN and aid agencies warn that without increased funding and international intervention, Afghanistan’s fragile stability could collapse under the weight of returning migrants.
As Fawzia Koofi, a former Afghan MP in exile, told The Sunday Times, some deportees are abandoned in the desert, left to fend for themselves. The international community, distracted by other global crises, has been slow to respond. With only a fraction of needed aid secured, the plight of Afghan returnees—particularly women and children—demands urgent attention to prevent further suffering in an already devastated nation.