Afghan migrants face crackdowns in Iran and rising asylum rejections in UK
Iranian authorities have detained more than 2,700 Afghan migrants in a recent crackdown, while the UK has rejected over 2,000 Afghan asylum applications, raising concerns among rights groups.
Malek Hossein Chegini, the police chief of Delijan in central Iran, said security forces had rounded up 2,735 undocumented Afghan migrants and transferred them to detention camps. He stated that the operation was carried out with judicial approval.
Iran has long emphasized the removal of Afghan migrants, with officials describing it as a public demand. Nader YarAhmadi, head of Iran’s Office for Foreign Nationals and Migrants, recently said a nationwide census of foreign nationals would be completed by the end of the year to help identify undocumented individuals.
Meanwhile, in the UK, newly released immigration data shows a sharp drop in acceptance rates for Afghan asylum seekers. In the final quarter of 2024, the approval rate fell to 36%, down from 98.5% a year earlier. The UK Home Office stated that while applications are being rejected, no deportations to Afghanistan are taking place.
The Guardian reported that the UK has stopped accepting travel documents issued by the Afghan embassy in London due to the Taliban’s control. Rights groups warn that the increase in rejections leaves many Afghans in legal limbo. Louise Calvey, an advocate for refugees, criticized the rejections, calling them concerning given the ongoing instability in Afghanistan.
Advocacy groups continue to push for a more humanitarian asylum process as concerns grow over the treatment of Afghan refugees both in Iran and the UK. The issue remains a key topic of debate among policymakers and human rights organizations.
