Afghan Border Faces Crisis as Iran Return Deadline Nears

Afghan refugees arrive from Iran at Islam Qala border between Afghanistan and Iran, on July 5, 2025.

Tens of thousands of Afghans have been flooding back into their homeland from Iran ahead of a July 6 deadline imposed by Tehran for undocumented migrants to leave the country, creating an emergency at key border crossings, the United Nations has warned.

Iran had announced in late May that all undocumented Afghan nationals must exit the country by the set date, a move that could affect up to 4 million people out of the 6 million Afghans currently residing in Iran.

According to the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), border crossings have surged significantly since mid-June, reaching a peak of over 43,000 people at the Islam Qala crossing in Herat province on July 1. The UN migration agency (IOM) reported that more than 250,000 Afghans returned from Iran in June alone.

UNICEF’s country representative Tajudeen Oyewale described the situation as an “emergency” in a country already facing a chronic returnee crisis. Over 1.4 million Afghans have returned this year from Iran and Pakistan, many of them under pressure.

"What is particularly alarming is that 25 percent of the returnees are children,” Oyewale said, noting a demographic shift from individual men to entire families crossing the border, often with limited possessions and little or no money.

Although Islam Qala has the capacity to receive large numbers, Oyewale said the site lacks adequate infrastructure and services to meet the current scale of arrivals. “When daily crossings exceed 20,000, it overwhelms all planning scenarios,” he added.

Emergency measures have been triggered to boost water, sanitation, vaccination, nutrition, and child protection services at the border points, originally built to accommodate just 7,000 to 10,000 people per day.

Many returnees have reported facing harassment, arrest, and deportation in Iran. “People are so afraid they don’t leave their homes. They send their children out for bread, and even they get arrested,” said Aref Atayi, a 38-year-old Afghan waiting at the IOM reception centre. “Even if I have to beg in my own country, it’s still better than being treated like that.”

The growing humanitarian crisis has been compounded by major cuts in international aid. The UN, global NGOs, and Taliban officials have jointly appealed for increased funding to support returnees and stabilise the situation.

The UN has also urged countries not to forcibly return Afghans, warning that the continued influx could worsen the country’s deep-rooted issues, including poverty, unemployment, and the impacts of climate change.