INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Iran and Turkey are preventing entry of Afghan refugees or forcibly returning them to Afghanistan, in violation of international law,
Amnesty International said in a report Wednesday.Hundreds of thousands fled Afghanistan in August 2021 after the United States left the
country in a chaotic military pullout.Many are poor and lack passports or other valid travel documents, making them especially vulnerable to
border police who use threats or outright violence to keep them out or push them back, Amnesty said.Iranian and Turkish security forces have
unlawfully used firearms against Afghans trying to cross the border irregularly as a deterrent and a pushback method, sometimes resulting in
deaths or injuries,& the report said.Amnesty said it based its findings on interviews with dozens of Afghans, including 74 who were forcibly
returned, sometimes with children or other family members.The NGO cited numerous cases of &unlawful killings, pushbacks by shooting and
other unlawful returns, arbitrary detention, and torture and other ill-treatment of Afghans at the hands of both Iranian and Turkish
officials.In particular, it documented killings of 11 Afghans by Iranian security forces and three Afghans by Turkish forces over the past
year.Under international law, countries are obliged to ensure a right to seek asylum and the principle of non-refoulement, or the forced
return of refugees to countries where they would face persecution or other human rights violations.The post Rights watchdog accuses Iran,
Turkey of illegal Afghan migrant pushbacks first appeared on Ariana News.
