Official Stresses Iran's Brilliant Record in Hosting Foreign Refugees

Addressing a ceremony marking World Refugee Day here in Tehran, Managing-Director of Bureau for Aliens and Foreign Immigrants' Affairs Mohammad Tahouri said that only 850 refugees from the three million have been authorized and the rest have made illegal entry to the country. 

Tahouri said that in the past three decades the Islamic Republic of Iran has ranked the first in term of serving refugees and foreign nationals across the globe. 

"The Islamic Republic of Iran during the eight-year Iraqi-imposed war (1980-1988) and the economic sanctions has served the refugees like its own citizens," the Iranian official added. 

On Sunday, the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) Representative in Iran Bernard Doyle lauded the country for its efforts and effective measures in supporting the Afghan refugees residing in Iran, and underlined that Tehran has shown a kind and humanitarian behavior towards the Afghan nationals. 

"Iran has well fulfilled its humanitarian duties in this regard," Doyle said in a meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi on Sunday. 

Over one million illegal Afghan refugees currently live in Iran but the Islamic Republic has received little international support. 

Iran has called on the international community to strengthen support for Iran for hosting Afghan refugees and provide repatriation support for the refugees. 

Voluntary repatriation of Afghan refugees from Iran has slowed in recent years in the face of poor security and economic conditions in Afghanistan, which Tehran blames on the US-led invasion of the country in 2001. 

Meanwhile, the Iranian government and the United Nations Refugee Agency on Monday signed a contract with Alborz insurance company, giving all registered refugees in Iran access to health insurance.