At least 78 people, including 17 children, died when a passenger bus crash occurred in western Afghanistan late Tuesday night. The bus, carrying Afghan migrants deported from Iran, collided with a truck and a motorcycle before catching fire, officials confirmed.
The tragic accident took place in Guzara district, Herat province, along a highway leading to Kabul. Authorities said the crash happened due to the bus driver’s excessive speed and negligence. “Everyone aboard the bus was killed, along with two people from the other vehicles,” stated Ahmadullah Mottaqi, Taliban’s provincial director of information and culture.
Provincial spokesman Mohammad Yousuf Saeedi added that all victims had boarded the bus in Islam Qala, a town near the Afghanistan–Iran border, after being deported.
The disaster comes amid a rising wave of forced returns from Iran. Since January, over 1.5 million Afghans have been expelled, according to the UN Refugee Agency.
Iran recently accelerated deportations, citing security concerns, though critics argue migrants are being unfairly targeted. Last week, Iran’s Interior Minister announced that another 800,000 Afghans would have to leave by March.
Afghanistan is already struggling to cope with the mass return of refugees from both Iran and Pakistan. The Taliban-led country faces shrinking international aid, high unemployment, and widespread poverty.
“The return of so many people is creating an additional strain on already overstretched resources,” said Arshad Malik, country director of Save the Children Afghanistan.
Traffic accidents remain frequent in Afghanistan due to war-damaged infrastructure, poor regulations, and reckless driving. Tuesday’s bus crash is among the deadliest in recent years, highlighting the dangers faced by migrants forced to return to an unstable homeland.
Authorities continue to investigate the incident, while humanitarian groups call for urgent support to assist the affected families.
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