Largest population purge this decade? Iran expels half a million Afghans in rapid crackdown post-Israel war

More than 500,000 Afghans were kicked out of Iran in just 16 days after the war between Iran and Israel ended. Iran has been planning this for months—they’ve been saying they want to remove undocumented Afghans doing low-paying jobs, as per the reports.

From June 24 to July 9, about 508,426 Afghans left through the Iran-Afghanistan border. On Friday alone, 51,000 crossed the border. On Tuesday, it was 30,635, and on Wednesday, 33,956. These numbers spiked just before a Sunday deadline by Iran, where undocumented Afghans were told to leave, according to the report by CNN.

The expulsions got faster after the 12-day Iran-Israel conflict. Iran accused some Afghans of spying for Israel, but there is no solid proof. Experts say Iran is using the spy story to get rid of a group they already wanted to remove. Many Afghans had lived in Iran for years—working tough jobs, but without legal papers, as stated by the reports.


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Life at the border is very hard

Suddenly, they were forced out—even people who had some legal documents were told to leave. Conditions at the Afghanistan border are very bad—temperatures hit 40°C (104°F) and people are waiting in the sun. Park said in just one week in July, 250,000 people returned, including about 400 unaccompanied kids, as mentioned by the CNN report.

Video footage from the Islam Qala border shows huge crowds waiting for help, many looking lost and desperate. A young man named Bashir said Iranian police took $200 from him, then forced him into a detention center, charged another $50, and treated people badly, according to the reports.

He said there were about 200 people crammed in, with no food or water, and people were beaten and abused. An 11-year-old girl named Parisa said she couldn’t go to school anymore and her family was told to leave even though they had some documents, as per the report by CNN.

Iran blames spies, but evidence is missing

The UN’s Richard Bennett said on X that hundreds of Afghans and minorities are being detained and there are media campaigns calling them traitors. Iran's government said, “We’ve been good hosts, but national security comes first,” justifying the deportations, according to the report by Reuters.

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Iranian state media aired a video of an alleged Afghan spy claiming he was paid $2,000 by someone in Germany to send information. But no solid proof was given, and the spy's name wasn’t even shared, according to the report by CNN.

Other videos showed police rounding up migrants, most of them Afghans, chasing them in open fields. Some employers told reporters they had to pay their Afghan workers before they left. One said, “They want to go back and are waiting for their money”, as stated by the reports.

FAQs

Q1. Why is Iran deporting Afghans now?
Iran started deporting undocumented Afghans faster after the Israel war, blaming them for spying without strong proof.

Q2. How many Afghans has Iran deported recently?
Over 500,000 Afghans were expelled from Iran between June 24 and July 9, 2025, according to the UN.