ZARANJ (Pajhwok): Local officials in southwestern Nimroz province say the bodies of 14 Afghan migrants who went missing while attempting to enter Iran through illegal routes have been found in the sands of the Lalo area of the Margo Desert.
The bodies will be transported to the provincial capital, Zaranj, where they will be formally identified before being handed over to their families.
Nimroz provincial government spokesman Mawlawi Abdul Mutawakil Tawhidi told Pajhwok Afghan News that the bodies were recovered on Thursday night during a joint search operation carried out by government officials and local residents.
He said the victims were among a group of 19 Afghan nationals who disappeared some time ago while attempting to cross into Iran through illegal routes.
According to Tawhidi, all 14 victims were residents of Badghis province. He clarified that they were not among the five bodies recovered in the same area last week. Those victims belonged to a separate group and were residents of Balkh province.
The bodies will be taken to Zaranj on Friday for formal identification before being returned to their families, he added.
On July 19, Pajhwok reported, citing the spokesman for the Nimroz governor’s office, that 19 Afghan citizens had gone missing in the Margo Desert in Chakhansur district after the vehicle transporting them broke down while they were attempting to enter Iran through illegal routes.
At the time, the spokesman said the incident had occurred four days earlier. The driver and one passenger left the group to search for water and equipment to repair the vehicle.
During their absence, the remaining passengers became separated and scattered in different directions as they tried to escape a severe sandstorm.
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