The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) has said that more than four million Afghan migrants in Iran are facing a severe economic crisis caused by war and sanctions.
Jan Egeland, the head of the NRC, wrote on X on Wednesday night, June 10, that Afghan migrants in Iran are being forgotten amid the coverage of ongoing wars. Egeland said that the Afghan migrant community in Iran is one of the largest refugee communities in the world.
He added that during a visit with an Afghan migrant family on the outskirts of Tehran, he met people who were unable to pay their rent.
The NRC chief said that this population of more than four million receives no external assistance. Egeland said, “With nearly 100% inflation, they cannot afford rent, food, and medicine.”
The Norwegian Refugee Council has previously also expressed concern about the situation of Afghan migrants in Iran.
Since the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan five years ago, hundreds of thousands of families have fled to other countries due to fears of retaliation by the group’s fighters, severe social restrictions on women, and lack of employment opportunities.
