Return of Undocumented Afghans - Weekly Situation Report (07 -13 July 2019)
- Countries
- Afghanistan
- + 2 more
- Sources
- IOM
- Publication date
- Origin
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Highlights
254,309 total returns from Iran and Pakistan since 01 Jan 2019
242,103 total returns from Iran
12,206 total returns from Pakistan
8,484 undocumented Afghans returned from Iran with 9% of returnees from Iran (776 individuals) assisted
420 undocumented Afghans returned from Pakistan with 99% of returnees from Pakistan (420 individuals) assisted
Return from Iran
According to the Border Monitoring Team of the Directorate of Refugees and Repatriation (DoRR), a total of 8,484 undocumented Afghans spontaneously returned or were deported from Iran through the Milak (Nimroz) and Herat (Islam Qala) border crossings between 07-13 July 2019, 15 % less than the previous week (9,936). 3,238 persons returned voluntarily and 5,246 persons were deported. This brings the total number of undocumented returnees from Iran since 01 January 2019 to 242,103. IOM provided post-arrival humanitarian assistance to 776 (9%) undocumented Afghans deported from Iran at its Transit Centers in Nimroz and Herat, including 119 Unaccompanied Migrant Children, 39 Medical Cases, 73 members of Single Parent Families, 16 Physically Disabled persons, 28 Unaccompanied Elderly, 6 Single Females, 261 members of deported families, 25 persons with substance abuse concerns and 1 person with mental health concerns.
Protection Assistance for Returnees
During the reporting period, the IOM Protection Unit conducted a 5-day training for all of its social protection workers from 07- 11 July 2019. Topics covered included modules on incorporating MHPSS into the work of the protection unit, Prevention of and Response to Gender Based Violence, Protection Incident Management, Advocacy and protection trends, reintegration and synergies with existing IOM reintegration programming, and case management software training.
Situation Overview
In 2019, IOM is projecting a return of over 570,000 returnees from Iran linked to ongoing economic challenges and a minimum of 50,000 returns from Pakistan, a figure that has already been endorsed by the Governments of Pakistan and Afghanistan. The remaining undocumented and Afghan Citizenship Card holding caseloads of more than 1,000,000 people may also face deportation from Pakistan in 2019. On 27 June, ACCs were extended until 31 October 2019 by the Government of Pakistan.