Eskandar Momeni, the Interior Minister of the Islamic Republic, has urged Afghan migrants residing in Iran to “return to their own country and work to rebuild it.”
Mr. Momeni made these remarks during a television program discussing the so-called “Foreign Nationals Organization Plan,” stating, “Iran cannot handle this volume of migration.”
He emphasized that “the priority is for those who enter illegally and without permission. This is the case worldwide, and migrants must respect the mechanisms of the host country.”
The Iranian Interior Minister blamed Afghan migrants for the rising unemployment in Iran, adding, “Many job opportunities are being taken away, and he expects Afghan migrants to return to their country.”
Additionally, four days ago, Eskandar Momeni announced that a comprehensive plan for organizing Afghans in Iran would soon be developed and implemented. He mentioned, “This complete plan will be executed with a suitable program, considering regional and neighboring considerations.”
The Mehr News Agency reported that the Iranian Interior Minister emphasized the necessity of organizing Afghans in Iran during his visit to the Sang Siah neighborhood in Shiraz last Thursday.
Momeni, who was recently appointed as the Interior Minister of the Islamic Republic, stated in a parliamentary session that his first step would be to expel illegal and unlicensed migrants. He has not provided details about the comprehensive plan for Afghans in Iran.
However, Mr. Momeni previously indicated that the solution to prevent migrant entry is to close the borders when he was not yet the Interior Minister, during a session of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission of the Iranian Parliament. At that time, he announced that planning would be done for the implementation of this plan.
Moreover, Masoud Pezeshkian, the President of Iran, had also emphasized border closure with Afghanistan during his electoral campaign.
It should be noted that after the collapse of the previous Afghan government, hundreds of thousands of citizens from that country migrated to neighboring countries, especially Iran and Pakistan. In the past three years, both countries have expelled hundreds of thousands of Afghan migrants.
