Latest News
Over 450,000 Afghans returned from Tehran Province in past 100 days, governor says
Iranian officials have previously justified the deportations as part of efforts to regulate residency and alleviate the strain on public services in areas with large foreign national populations.
More than one million migrants have been returned from Iran to Afghanistan over the last 100 days, with approximately 450,000 coming from Tehran province alone, Tehran’s governor Mohammad Sadegh Motamedian announced on Saturday.
Motamedian explained that individuals without valid legal documents were identified and transferred to border crossings shared with Afghanistan to be sent back to their home country. “Managing foreign nationals has been a key priority for the government,” he said, highlighting that about half of all foreign nationals in Iran reside in Tehran province, which prompted a large-scale identification campaign.
The governor noted the impact on public services, citing that last year over 220,000 foreign national students utilized more than 6,000 classrooms across the province. “This year, with families registering their children in local schools, the existing educational capacity will be freed up for Iranian students without the need to build new schools,” Motamedian added.
The mass deportations have drawn international concern. In late July, Amnesty International urged Iran’s interior minister to urgently halt the forced expulsions of Afghans. The human rights group reported that over one million Afghans—including individuals born in Iran and long-term residents—have been forcibly returned in recent months. Amnesty linked the increase in deportations to escalating tensions between Israel and Iran, noting that more than half a million Afghans were expelled since June 1, including thousands of unaccompanied children.
The organization warned that millions more Afghans remain at risk of deportation, especially women and girls, whom Amnesty insists must be recognized as refugees and protected from return to Afghanistan, where the Taliban continue systemic gender persecution.
Iranian officials have previously justified the deportations as part of efforts to regulate residency and alleviate the strain on public services in areas with large foreign national populations.
Latest News
Afghanistan says Pakistani military post destroyed near Spin Boldak
Afghanistan’s Ministry of Defense says a Pakistani military post near Spin Boldak was targeted and destroyed after Pakistani forces opened fire toward Afghanistan.
Ministry spokesperson Enayatullah Khwarazmi said in a post on X that Afghan forces suffered no casualties or damage in the clash.
Khwarazmi also rejected claims made by the Pakistani side about the incident, describing them as “propaganda.”
Latest News
Mujahid: Pakistan attacking Afghanistan to evade Mecca Pact responsibilities
He warned that the Islamic Emirate would give an “appropriate response” to what he called the Pakistani military regime’s “bullying.”
Islamic Emirate spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid has accused Pakistan of carrying out attacks on Afghanistan to divert attention from its domestic problems and to evade responsibilities under the “Mecca Pact.”
Speaking at a religious seminary in Kandahar, Mujahid said Pakistan was facing political and economic challenges at home and was using attacks on Afghanistan to shift public attention away from protests and its internal problems.
“Pakistan, by violating the territory of its neighboring Islamic country, wants to divert attention from its failures,” he said.
Mujahid also criticized Pakistan’s political situation, claiming that political space had been restricted and that freedoms guaranteed under the country’s laws were not being allowed.
He said Pakistan’s economic problems had also increased significantly and accused the country of seeking to distract the public from those problems by engaging in conflict with Afghanistan.
Mujahid further accused Pakistan’s military leadership of putting the Pakistani people at risk through what he described as its “false position.”
He warned that the Islamic Emirate would give an “appropriate response” to what he called the Pakistani military regime’s “bullying.”
His remarks followed Pakistani airstrikes on Kandahar, Paktia and Khost provinces on Thursday, which Afghan authorities said killed four civilians.
The strikes came three days after attacks on Kunar and Paktika provinces, in which Afghan authorities said three civilians were killed.
Latest News
Kabul rejects U.S. claim that meth seized in Pakistan was of Afghan origin
Balkhi said the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) has imposed an absolute ban on the production, trafficking and use of all types of narcotics in Afghanistan.
Afghanistan’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Abdul Qahar Balkhi has rejected a U.S. claim that 463 kilograms of synthetic drugs seized in Pakistan were of Afghan origin, calling the attribution “unfounded and politically motivated.”
Balkhi said the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad should investigate the origin of the seized drugs in Pakistan rather than attributing them to Afghanistan.
“The attribution by the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad of the synthetic drugs bound for Sri Lanka and intercepted in Pakistan through joint U.S.-Pakistani efforts as ‘Afghan-origin’ is an unfounded and politically motivated allegation,” Balkhi said.
He said the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) has imposed an absolute ban on the production, trafficking and use of all types of narcotics in Afghanistan.
Balkhi also claimed that following the ban in Afghanistan, the cultivation, production and trafficking of narcotics have increased “on the other side of the Durand Line.”
He further argued that Afghanistan does not have the capacity to produce synthetic drugs and said crossing points along the Durand Line have been completely closed to all movement for nearly a year.
His remarks came after the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad said U.S. and Pakistani anti-narcotics authorities had seized 463 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine worth an estimated $21 million and bound for Sri Lanka.
The embassy said the operation led to multiple arrests and highlighted ongoing U.S. cooperation and training with Pakistani authorities to disrupt international drug-trafficking networks.
-
Sport4 days agoAfghanistan to face Japan and Nepal in Asian Games cricket group stage
-
Regional5 days agoIran and US trade threats after Houthi attacks escalate regional conflict
-
World4 days agoCNN, MS NOW and Politico sue Trump, challenging White House ban
-
Health4 days agoFour-day polio vaccination campaign begins across Afghanistan
-
Latest News3 days agoUN reiterates call for respect for international law after Kunar airstrikes
-
Latest News4 days agoKhalilzad condemns Pakistan airstrikes, says current strategy is not working
-
Latest News2 days agoAriana Afghan Airlines ranks seventh among 45 Central Asian airlines
-
Latest News3 days agoAfghan Official: Pakistan’s airstrikes will not go unanswered
