Iranian Foreign Ministry Confirms Afghan Citizens Killed, Injured in US and Israeli Airstrikes

Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Ismail Baghaei confirmed that Afghan citizens residing in Iran were killed and wounded during US and Israeli airstrikes.

Baghaei shared a video on X showing Iranian rescue teams extracting an 8-year-old Afghan child from rubble caused by the attacks. He described the strikes as part of a "35-day military aggression" by the US and Israel against Iran.

According to Baghaei, 13 Afghan citizens were killed in Tehran last week as a result of the airstrikes.

Iran hosts an estimated 3-4 million Afghan migrants and refugees, according to United Nations figures. Of these, 1.65 million hold residency documents, with 99% living in urban areas, particularly concentrated in Tehran, Razavi Khorasan and other provinces.

The ministry highlighted the hardships faced by these migrants amid the attacks, internet blackouts and increased returns to Afghanistan, which is straining the country's humanitarian crisis.

Data from a Taliban commission indicates that 86,253 Afghan migrants returned from Iran to Afghanistan since the start of 2026. Returns have recently dropped to between 10 and 100 per day.