TEHRAN (IRNA) — The Afghan Ministry of Refugees and Repatriates has reported that in the past five months, more than 185,000 people have left Iran to return home,

During this period, 85,000 refugees voluntarily returned to their country of origin, the remaining 100,000 due to deteriorating living conditions and unemployment. Over the past year, about 700,000 refugees from Iran have also returned home.

According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), over the past six years, more than 3.2 mln Afghan refugees have returned to Afghanistan, 95% of them from Iran and Pakistan.

The first wave of Afghan refugees arrived in Iran following the USSR’s occupation of Afghanistan in 1979. This wave lasted until 1993. The second wave of refugees arrived in Iran at the same time as the Taliban regime, from 1994 to 2001.