Mohammad Sadegh Motamedian, the governor of Tehran, has recently announced that the operation to collect and expel “unauthorized” Afghan migrants has intensified.
According to the Mehr News Agency, the governor made this statement during a visit to the Askarabad camp on Saturday, June 31, and said: “Dealing with the illegal presence of foreign nationals in the country is a security and social necessity.”
He emphasized that law enforcement, municipalities, the Center for Foreign Nationals Affairs, and other institutions are conducting the process of identifying, collecting, transferring, and expelling unauthorized individuals with speed and precision.
Mohammad Sadegh Motamedian added that Iran’s bus company is transporting these migrants to the Afghanistan border.
This comes as reports have emerged that following the outbreak of war between Iran and Israel, the country has prevented some Afghan migrants, including those holding census cards and exit permits, from leaving. Several Afghan migrants have stated that despite having exit permits, they were not allowed to leave Iran.
It is noteworthy that Iranian officials have not commented on the prevention of migrants holding census cards and exit permits from leaving.
It should be mentioned that this year, Iran invalidated the census cards of about two million Afghan migrants, which were considered proof of legal residency, effectively turning them into illegal migrants in the country.
The Iranian government issues exit permits to these migrants after they visit the so-called “sponsorship offices” twice and warns them that if they do not leave according to the deadline specified in the permit, they will face fines and forced expulsion.
