Political activists and Christian citizens in Türkiye face the threat of deportation to Iran

While the Turkish government has expanded its security cooperation with Tehran, the process of arresting and deporting Iranian refugees, from political activists to Christian citizens, has become more worrying than ever.

According to reports from reliable sources, in a controversial move, Turkish immigration police have arrested Kurdish human rights activist and political refugee Soran Aram in Ankara and transferred him to a deportation camp. This action was taken despite the fact that he had valid refugee documents from the United Nations and a legal residence card.

Soran Aram, who was forced to leave Iran more than twelve years ago due to pressure and threats from the Islamic Republic's security forces, confirms in a video he posted on social media that his asylum case has been accepted by the United Nations and has even been approved by the Canadian government through a sponsored visa.

Soran says in this video message: "I ask human rights activists to contact international institutions and the Canadian embassy to expedite the process of transferring me and my family."

Despite this legal status, Turkish immigration police have detained him and are threatening to deport him, an action that is considered a clear violation of the principle of "non-refoulement" by international standards.

In July 2015, the Urmia Intelligence Department again summoned the family of the human rights activist and pressured them to return their son to Iran. According to informed sources, whose identities have not been disclosed for security reasons, security agents told Aram's family that he would be safe if he returned to Iran and asked for the family's cooperation in convincing them.

The Kurdpa news agency had previously reported on security pressures and legal threats against Soran Aram's family, writing that the Mahabad Intelligence Department had threatened them with severe sentences if they did not cooperate.

Along with political activists, numerous reports from Christian and human rights organizations indicate that many Iranian Christian citizens are also being detained in Turkish camps and face a serious risk of deportation.

According to several human rights organizations, including Article 18 and Open Doors, in recent months, Turkish immigration police have repeatedly detained and deported Christian citizens who had fled Iran due to religious pressure and persecution.

This trend has coincided with security agreements between Ankara and Tehran. Activists believe that the Turkish government, in an effort to maintain its political and economic relations with the Islamic Republic, has in many cases refused to grant asylum to Iranians, especially Christians.

Experts warn that returning Christian citizens or political activists to Iran could expose them to detention, interrogation, and even torture, a matter that is in complete contradiction with Turkey's international obligations on asylum.

The arrest of Soran Aram and the threat of deportation are just one example of a worrying trend involving dozens of Iranian refugees in Turkey. At the same time, Iranian Christians face a similar danger, a danger that the international community and human rights organizations have repeatedly warned about.

If this trend continues, Turkey will effectively be aligning itself with Tehran's repressive policies, an action that not only violates humanitarian principles and international obligations, but also puts the lives of hundreds of Iranian refugees at risk of being returned to the land they fled.