Afghan refugees claimed mistreatment at the hands of Iranian police after authorities in Mashhad city of Iran’s Razavi Khorasan province ordered a ban on mobile Afghan vendors in the city’s markets, TOLO News reported.

The notice was placed in the entrance of Mashhad’s bazaar. The city is host to around half a million Afghan citizens.

Afghans living in Iran voiced concerns over the decision, saying that the move will further hinder their activities in the city and may also cause significant challenges in their daily lives.

They also complained about mistreatment by the country’s police toward the Afghan refugees.

Enayatullah Alokozai, an Afghan refugee in Iran, urged Iran to address the challenges of the refugees through diplomatic paths to ensure the refugees are treated according to international laws.

Meanwhile, rights activists also called for treating Afghan refugees using long-term vision.

“Iran should have a deep vision for the long-term and effectively use of the Afghan refugees based on its territory, in economic development,” Asifa Stanikzai, a refugee rights activist said.

Read: Iran deports 400,000 Afghan refugee

The Afghan interim government was also reported to have been in contact with Iranian officials to address the issues faced by Afghan refugees living in the country.

Deputy Minister of Refugees and Repatriation, Abdul Rahman Rashid said that the Afghan officials were in talks with the Iranian officials to address the issue.

“The Islamic Emirate’s officials have talked with Iranian delegations and now that the acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi has traveled, he will discuss this problem with them,” he said.

Iran has been asking for the United Nations’ assistance in repatriating Afghan refugees living in Iran as Iran’s foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian asked the UN to facilitate the return of Afghan refugees to their country.

Iran has been hosting Afghan refugees for more than 45 years, he said, while asking the UN to cooperate with Iran in the return of the migrants to their home country.

Earlier this month, angry Iranian mobs allegedly torched houses of Afghan immigrants living in the country after an Iranian citizen was stabbed to death during a fight, Iranian media reported.

The violent protests erupted against the Afghan immigrants after Iranian local media reported that alleged Afghan immigrants stabbed two Iranian youths during a fight on November 30 in Meybod city of Yazd province.