[Tolonews] - The Islamic Republic of Iran has decided to deport 900,000 Afghan refugees in three months, reports say.
| Don't expect the professional hand-wringers to say a word. |
The Iranian Ministry of Interior has given a 3-month deadline to the Afghan refugees who have no proper documents, to leave the country voluntarily Each Afghan refugee who leaves voluntarily will receive $150 from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Iranian Ministry of Interior says.
The issue of Afghan refugees in Iran has been a major challenge for the Afghan government in the recent years. There are currently around 3 million Afghan refugees living in Iran.
The Afghan Ministry of Immigration and Returnees has pledged to do what it can to facilitate the return of Afghan refugees from Iran in cooperation with the UNHCR.
Officials from Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Japan had previously decided to hold a joint meeting in Tokyo by the end of the year 2011 to discuss Afghan refugees, but the Iranian officials says that the meeting will be held in another country soon. |