HERAT, Afghanistan — More than 230,000 Afghans were sent back from Iran in June, most of them forcibly deported, as Tehran ramps up removals ahead of a July 6 deadline for undocumented migrants, the United Nations International Organization for Migration (IOM) confirmed Monday.

From June 1 to June 28, a staggering 233,941 Afghans returned across the border, with 131,912 returning in just one week, said IOM spokesperson Avand Azeez Agha.

“Since January, 691,049 people have returned — 70% of them involuntarily,” Agha said.

The IOM noted that daily return figures reached 30,000 last week, many arriving at the Islam Qala border crossing in Herat province aboard packed buses. Most carried only what they could hold, facing uncertain futures in a country plagued by poverty, high unemployment, and aid shortages.

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 A Shift Toward Family Deportations

UN officials report a notable shift in recent weeks: entire families, not just individual men, are being deported. Mothers, fathers, and children are now among those returning to a country they may not even know — some having lived their entire lives in Iran.

“I was born in Iran,” said Samiullah Ahmadi, 28, speaking near the border. “But even with valid documents, they didn’t treat us with respect.”

⚠️ Humanitarian Systems Overwhelmed

The Taliban-led government has asked for a “dignified” and “gradual” return of migrants. But its cash-strapped institutions — alongside international aid groups struggling with severe funding cuts — are ill-equipped to handle the sudden surge in returnees.

The IOM warned that on high-volume days, such as at Islam Qala, only 3% of returnees received any form of assistance.

🌍 Regional Pressures, Diplomatic Fallout

While deportees cite increasing pressure from Iranian authorities, many deny any direct connection to Iran’s recent tensions with Israel. Still, the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) acknowledged that the fallout from regional instability, especially the Iran-Israel conflict, may have accelerated deportations and returns.

“The shifting policies of host countries are overwhelming Afghanistan’s already fragile humanitarian and development systems,” UNAMA said in a statement.

This wave follows a similar mass return from Pakistan, leaving Afghan authorities and international agencies scrambling to manage hundreds of thousands of displaced people with limited shelter, food, or employment opportunities.