'Life and death hang by a minute': The Afghan refugees trapped between war and mass deportations in Iran

As the Iran-Israel conflict intensified, thousands of undocumented Afghan refugees found themselves trapped in a country that neither welcomes nor protects them, facing not only the threat of airstrikes but also a deepening web of systemic discrimination, restricted movement, and mass deportations.

Zahra, in her 20s, arrived in Iran nine months ago to apply for an Irish visa after being accepted into a PhD programme at the University of Galway. Her application was still pending when the bombs started falling.

Trying to flee to the north-eastern city of Mashhad, she encountered yet another barrier.

“Today, (Thursday the 19), I was trying to enter the bus terminal. A soldier stopped me and said, ‘You’re Afghan, you’re not allowed in.’ I wanted to go to Mashhad, as it’s apparently safer, but the roads are closed to us. I’m stuck in Tehran," she wrote to The New Arab (TNA) from her temporary apartment in Tehran.

On her way home, she witnessed Iranian soldiers forcibly removing Afghans from their cars and dumping them by the roadside to be sent back across the border.

Brutal but unsurprising — this was just one more layer in the discrimination Zahra says Afghans routinely face in Iran.

“Afghans can’t really get bank cards, which makes it difficult to pay for services like travel tickets. In government offices, when we go to extend our visas, we often encounter insulting behaviour. Now, some landlords have taken money from refugees for rent and security deposits, but with the current situation deteriorating, they’ve disappeared without returning the money.”

The psychological ordeal left Zahra sleepless, tearful, and constantly anxious. “The fear and emotional trauma I’ve experienced in Kabul all came back to me,” she told The New Arab via a message on Signal.

'Where should we go now?'

Iran hosts the largest Afghan diaspora in the world. While UNHCR estimates the number of Afghan citizens in the country at 4.5 million, the actual figure may be as high as 6 million, as many arrive and remain in the country without proper documentation.

The treatment of Afghan refugees was a long-time concern for rights groups. Human Rights Watch reported in 2013 that Afghan refugees in Iran face widespread discrimination, including limited access to education, healthcare, and legal employment. Many refugees live under constant threat of arrest, detention, and deportation due to restrictive policies and a lack of proper documentation.

Due to the near-total internet shutdown in Iran in the last days, The New Arab spoke with concerned families and friends of Afghan citizens stranded inside the country. They shared screenshots and voice notes sent by their frightened loved ones in Iran, when internet access was still available.

Nasir Ahmad’s family, including his nieces and nephews aged between three months and 14 years, travelled to Iran after being forced out of Afghanistan by a lack of job opportunities.

Without passports, they were compelled to cross the border illegally, enduring a perilous 26-day journey from Kabul to Tehran. Their undocumented status, coupled with widespread discrimination, made life in Iran extremely difficult.

“The kids couldn’t go to school, nor could they access medical services. Sometimes, even bakeries refused to sell them bread,” Ahmad said.

Before the family could attempt to move on to another country in hopes of reaching Europe, the conflict broke out. Since then, they have had only limited access to the internet, leaving Ahmad in a constant state of anxiety about their safety and well-being.

“They’ve been very scared, especially the children, since one of the rockets hit near where they live. They asked me: ‘We escaped war, where should we go now?’ They live without hope. They also told me they’re not allowed to travel from one city to another,” he told The New Arab.

“I worry a lot and pray for their safety.”

No way forward and no way back 

The situation of Afghans stranded in Iran is particularly precarious, as just weeks before the Iran-Israel conflict erupted, authorities in Tehran launched yet another wave of mass deportations. Additionally, the war forced many government offices to shut down, leaving those trying to regularise their status in limbo.

Fatima Ahmadi’s father was in the process of obtaining a residency card after his one-month visa expired when the war broke out, making it impossible for him to retrieve his passport.

“There are many Afghans in Iran who are unwillingly caught up in this war, and, as always, the Islamic Republic government has no strategy or protection for them,” the woman laments.

Afghans become casualties in the brutal Israeli attacks, too. The BBC reported on an Afghan migrant worker, 18-year-old Abdul Wali from Ghor province, who was working on a construction site in northeastern Tehran as the primary breadwinner for his family. His temporary shelter stood next to a military building. On Tuesday, an Israeli airstrike turned that proximity into a death sentence.

At least 430 people were killed and 3,500 were wounded in Iran since the start of the conflict on June 13, Iranian state-run Nour News reported on Saturday, citing the country's health ministry. It remains unclear how many of the victims are foreign nationals.

Many undocumented Afghans in Iran may also avoid seeking medical help out of fear of arrest or deportation.

That was the case for the nephew of Alireza Hakimi, an Afghan refugee in Warsaw. After the boy was injured during one of the airstrikes in the Iranian capital near the country’s main Imam Khomeini International Airport, the family had to seek expensive assistance from one of the private clinics. 

On Monday, the Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation urged Afghan refugees in Iran to avoid sensitive military sites, political gatherings, and partisan activities while preparing for a potential sudden influx of returnees.

“Many Afghan migrants want to return to Afghanistan, but for various reasons, they haven’t been able to leave Iran,” says Zahra Mandagar, an Afghan activist currently residing in the Netherlands.

"Many Afghans were killed during the Israeli attacks, yet no one seems to pay attention to them. The situation is dire. One of my friends, a student in Tehran, managed to escape to the nearby city of Qom but now faces complete uncertainty. He says, 'I have no way forward and no way back. My life and death hang by a minute.'”

Going back is not an option 

The number of daily returns has surged in recent days, from around 1,500 to as many as 8,000, with an average of 3,000 people crossing back into Afghanistan each day, according to authorities at the Islam Qala border crossing between Iran and Afghanistan, located on the route between Mashhad and Herat.

The Taliban de facto government, still not recognised by any country in the world, reached out to the NGO community in the country to assist with providing services for the returnees.

“They also seem to use some of their own resources. However, this comes at a time when many clinics have shut down due to the closure of USAID programmes, and all government ministries are reducing their staff by 20%,” Terje Watterdal, the Afghanistan country director of Norwegian Afghanistan Committee, told The New Arab from Kabul.

Others, however, see returning as an even greater threat. Alireza Hakimi’s brother-in-law served in the national security forces of the former Islamic Republic of Afghanistan before the Taliban takeover. “His life was in serious danger because of that. Going back is not an option,” Hakimi said.

“My sister said going back to Afghanistan would be worse than death.”

Zahra, an education activist for girls, fears prosecution and a bleak future, as women in Afghanistan are barred from studying beyond sixth grade and face severe restrictions on employment opportunities.

The Islamic Emirate has announced that it is in contact with Iranian officials to ensure the safety of Afghan migrants and address their concerns. Spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid stated that authorities in Kabul are actively engaging with their Iranian counterparts.

“We hope, God willing, that the migrants will not be harmed and that the situation remains under control. Nevertheless, we are in contact with all relevant officials and institutions, and if problems arise, we will explore possible solutions,” he said.

As of Saturday afternoon, Zahra still had not been able to leave Tehran.

Jagoda Grondecka is an award-winning independent journalist focusing on Afghanistan and the Middle East. She is currently reporting from Lebanon 

Follow her on X: @jagodagrondecka and Instagram: @grondecka