KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – A recent UN report reveals that over 1000 people from Afghanistan lost their lives on migration routes in 2023, indicating the largest death toll among Afghan nationals recorded in the past decade.
In a newly released report titled “A Decade of Documenting Migrant Deaths” on Tuesday, March 26, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) revealed that the majority of these fatalities (1,068) among Afghan citizens occurred during their journey from Afghanistan to Iran.
The border between Iran and Afghanistan is covered by dry deserts in Nimruz, Farah and Herat. Wandering for days in heat and sund, refugees starve or are preyed on by smugglers.
In the past decade, as per IOM’s report, more than 63,000 migrant deaths have been recorded. Notably, over one in three of those identified come from countries in conflict, including Afghanistan, Myanmar, Syria, and Ethiopia.
“More than one-third of deceased migrants whose country of origin could be identified come from countries in conflict or with large refugee populations, highlighting the dangers faced by those attempting to flee conflict zones without safe pathways,” the organization said.
Ugochi Daniels, IOM’s Deputy Director General for Operations, emphasized, “Despite the many lives lost whose identities remain unknown, we know that almost 5,500 females have perished on migration routes during the last ten years and the number of identified children is nearly 3,500,”
Every year, thousands of Afghans leave their homeland through legal or illegal means in search of a better life abroad. The majority who cannot secure legal pathways attempt to enter Europe via illegal routes, often passing through Iran and then Turkey.
The return of the Taliban to power in Afghanistan in August 2021 has led to a significant increase in the number of refugees fleeing the country. Many fear persecution and revenge from the Taliban, and have been forced to take unsafe and illegal routes to reach Europe or other countries.
Deteriorating economic conditions and lack of opportunities for youth, particularly for women and girls, incentivize even more people to leave Afghanistan, even those who might not have immediate security concerns.
According to the IOM report, out of 3,471 citizens of Afghanistan who died on migration routes during the past decade, the vast majority of them (2,448) died while fleeing to neighboring countries following the Taliban’s takeover of the country in August 2021.
During the past year, hundreds of refugees from Afghanistan have died in various incidents in other countries, including Iran, Pakistan, Turkey, and Italy.
91 Afghans died last year after a ship carrying refugees sank off the coast of Italy. Another ship carrying refugees sank off the coast of Greece, the Afghanistan embassy in the country announced that a number of citizens of Afghanistan were among the dead, but did not provide specific statistics.
It is not only thorny waves that take the lives of desperate refugees. Even on land and in places where they seem partially settled, tragedy follows. Last February, the deadly earthquake in Turkey reportedly killed at least 200 Afghans and injured more than 300 of them.
In August last year, the Taliban announced that it had received the bodies of at least 800 Afghan refugees from various countries over the course of a year.
