A bus transporting Afghan migrants who had recently been expelled from Iran crashed and burst into flames on Tuesday, August 19, 2025, in western Afghanistan, resulting in the deaths of 79 individuals, including 19 children.
The incident took place in Guzara district, Herat province, when the passenger bus collided with a motorcycle and a fuel truck.
Ahmadullah Muttaqi, an Afghan government official, stated that the truck was transporting fuel and caught fire following the collision with the bus, which was fully loaded with passengers. The fire spread to the bus, and most of the passengers succumbed to burn injuries.
The bus was en route from Islam Qala, a border crossing between Afghanistan and Iran, to Kabul when the crash happened. While most casualties were from the bus, individuals in the truck and motorcycle also lost their lives.
Herat province police attributed the accident to excessive speed and driver negligence.
Witness Akbar Tawakoli reported, “There was a lot of fire… There was a lot of screaming, but we couldn’t even get within 50 meters (approximately 55 yards) to rescue anyone.”
The victims were part of a large group of Afghan migrants returning home after expulsion from Iran. Over 2.2 million Afghans have returned from Iran and Pakistan in recent months, with more than 1.8 million coming from Iran alone.
Iran had initially set a July 6 deadline for undocumented Afghans to leave, which was later extended to September 6. The number of border crossings surged from mid-June, with some days seeing around 40,000 people entering Afghanistan.
Many returning Afghans had lived abroad for decades, having left during the Soviet invasion in 1979 and following the Taliban’s resurgence in 2021. In Iran, they were often employed in low-wage jobs, such as construction.
After a program introduced by Iran in March, deportations increased significantly following its conflict with Israel, driven by unfounded claims that Afghans were spying for Israel during and before the attacks.
The United Nations reported that over 500,000 Afghans were deported from Iran within 16 days after the end of the conflict with Israel in June, marking a significant instance of forced displacement this decade.
The death toll rose to 79 after two survivors initially rescued from the wreckage later succumbed to burn injuries at a military hospital in Herat. Chief physician Mohammad Janan Moqadas indicated that many bodies were too severely burned for identification.
Traffic incidents are common in Afghanistan due to deteriorated road conditions from years of conflict, reckless driving on highways, and insufficient traffic regulation enforcement. Infrastructure has further declined since the Taliban regained power in 2021.
The crash underscores the perilous conditions faced by Afghan returnees traveling on Afghanistan’s deteriorating roads. Many returnees arrive without employment or housing, exacerbating a humanitarian crisis in a country where nearly half of the 46 million population relies on humanitarian assistance.
In December 2023, two separate bus accidents involving tankers resulted in 52 fatalities. In March 2024, another 20 people died in a collision in Helmand province. In late 2022, a tanker overturned in the Salang Pass, causing a fire that killed 31 individuals.
The Taliban government expressed condolences over the fatalities and has initiated an investigation into the accident. Transportation authorities have been tasked with collecting details about the incident and identifying those accountable.
Afghanistan is facing challenges in providing basic services amid international funding cuts, making it difficult to accommodate the large number of returnees. The nation is experiencing one of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises, compounded by decades of conflict and economic decline since the Taliban’s takeover.