Otunbayeva: Afghanistan Cannot Handle the Influx of Returning Migrants; This Is a Test for the World’s Conscience

Photo: UNAMA

Following the mass deportation of Afghan migrants from Iran, Roza Otunbayeva, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Afghanistan and Head of the UNAMA office, has raised alarm over the situation of returnees and called for immediate action.

According to a UNAMA press release published on Tuesday (15 July), Otunbayeva, during a visit to the Islam Qala border in Herat province, met with returning migrants and described their dire condition as “a alarm for the international community.”

She emphasized that the Taliban alone are not capable of managing this massive influx and that humanitarian organizations are also under pressure. According to her, the current situation is “a test of the collective conscience” of the international community, as Afghanistan, already facing a humanitarian crisis, poverty, and drought, is unable to absorb the shock of such large-scale returns.

The UNAMA chief warned that in a country where over 70 percent of the population lives below the poverty line, the return of more than 1.4 million migrants will further deepen the humanitarian crisis. She called on governments and international institutions “not to turn away” and not to abandon the returning migrants. In her words, “What we are witnessing now is the direct result of the global community’s failure to act on its responsibilities.”

Meanwhile, the Bakhtar news agency reported that on Monday (14 July), 3,662 Afghan families returned from neighboring countries to Afghanistan.

According to the report, 37 families entered through Torkham, 35 through Spin Boldak, 1,229 through the Pul-e-Abrisham in Nimroz province, and 2,361 families through the Islam Qala border in Herat province.

At the same time, the Taliban governor’s office in Herat reported yesterday that more than 574,000 Afghan migrants have been deported from Iran in just the past 22 days.

It is reported that nearly 30,000 migrants are deported daily from Iran, while the necessary facilities to accommodate them at the borders are lacking.

The deportation of Afghan migrants from Iran and Pakistan continues and has intensified in recent days.