KABUL (Pajhwok): The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has expressed deep concern over an unprecedented surge in undocumented Afghan migrants returning from Iran, with over 256,000 individuals who returned in June alone.

In a statement released Monday, the IOM warned that this record influx is overwhelming border resources, while significant funding shortfalls continue to severely limit the agency's ability to respond. Currently, only 10 percent of those in need are receiving assistance.

“The sheer number of returns from Iran, coming so soon after a spike from Pakistan, is placing immense strain on an already fragile response system,” said IOM Director General Amy Pope.

“Families are arriving with nothing but the clothes on their backs-exhausted and in urgent need of food, medical care, and support. The scale of returns is deeply alarming and demands a stronger and more immediate international response. Afghanistan cannot manage this alone.”

The spike follows a March 20 deadline set by the Iranian government, requiring all undocumented Afghans to leave the country. Returns began accelerating in April, intensified in May, and peaked in June. On June 25 alone, IOM recorded more than 28,000 people crossing back into Afghanistan in a single day.

Between January 1 and June 30, 2025, IOM documented 714,572 Afghan returnees from Iran-99 percent of whom were undocumented, and 70 percent were forcibly returned. A concerning trend has also emerged: while previous returnees were predominantly single young men, an increasing number of families are now being deported.

In June, over 23,000 returnees received critical support at IOM-run reception centers located at the Islam Qala and Milak border crossings, along with associated transit facilities in Herat and Nimroz provinces.

After screening, IOM and its partners provided food, temporary shelter, transportation, healthcare, cash assistance, and psychosocial support, particularly for vulnerable groups such as women and children.

IOM has consistently warned that Afghanistan is not equipped to absorb such high numbers of returnees. With nearly 900,000 people returning from Iran and Pakistan combined in the first half of 2025, local systems are on the brink of collapse-threatening access to essential services for both returnees and host communities.

The agency continues to emphasize that returns must be safe, dignified, voluntary, and manageable for receiving communities. However, without urgent funding and coordinated regional action, the situation risks escalating into wider instability.

IOM is also calling for increased investment in return areas to support reintegration and help reduce the drivers of unsafe, involuntary migration.

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