Iran deports 102 illegal migrants from Pakistan

Those deported were immigrants without valid documentation, Akram Baloch, a Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) official in Taftan, told Arab News. (Shutterstock)

• Most were Pakistanis from Punjab province, officials say
• Human traffickers send thousands to Europe and Iran each year

KARACHI: Iran on Sunday handed over 102 Pakistani nationals to authorities along the Taftan border, in the Balochistan province, officials said on Monday.
Those deported were immigrants without valid documentation, Akram Baloch, a Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) official in Taftan, told Arab News. “Initial interrogations suggest they were not going to Europe. Their destination was Iran,” he said, adding that the FIA is investigating the incident.
Jawad Khan, deputy director of FIA’s immigration cell in Quetta, confirmed to Arab News that all the accused are now in the custody of the FIA and have been booked under the passport act of 1974. “After initial investigations the accused will be produced before the court,” Khan said, adding that the court usually sets the accused free after imposing a fine.
Taking advantage of the 909-kilometer route bordering Pakistan with Iran, agents traffic aspirants to either Europe or Iran via Turkey. “Every year, thousands of Pakistanis make failed attempts to enter different countries of Europe via Iran and Turkey for better job opportunities. Almost 90 percent of those arrested belong to the Gujarat, Sialkot and Mandi Bahauddin districts of the Punjab province,” Khan said, adding that a majority of them are sent back after being arrested at the border.
Among those arrested on Sunday include ones looking to relocate to Iran, he said.
Earlier this year, the bodies of two Pakistani nationals were handed over to the authorities on April 17. Shahzeb Khan and Muhammad Sadiq, from the Bannu district of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, were killed by Iranian security forces when they, along with five others, tried to enter Iranian territory from the Balochistan side, FIA official Asif Naeem told Arab News.
The rest of the members from the group were arrested.