Desperation drives thousands of Afghans a day across borders

By LEE KEATH and MSTYSLAV CHERNOV
Associated Press

HERAT, Afghanistan (AP) — Afghans are streaming across the border into Iran in accelerating numbers, driven by desperation. Since the Taliban takeover in mid-August, Afghanistan’s economic collapse has accelerated, robbing millions of work and leaving them too poor to feed their families. In the past three months, more than 300,000 people have crossed illegally into Iran and more are coming, at the rate of 4,000 to 5,000 a day. That’s according to the Norwegian Refugee Council. The European Union is now bracing for a potential swell in Afghans trying to reach its shores, and Iran is struggling to shut its doors.