As the Taliban has taken over Afghanistan, thousands of Afghans are desperately fleeing. Many are seeking refuge in Iran, and hundreds are attempting to cross into Turkey illegally.

At the beginning of August, reports and videos showed hundreds of Afghans crossing into the city of Van across the Iranian border. However, Turkey has since tightened its borders.

On August 14, Istanbul's migration authority announced that over 37,000 foreigners were deported from Turkey since the beginning of the year and that over 12,000 of them were Afghan nationals.

Turkey's Defense Minister Hulusi Akar inspected the border over the weekend and stressed that new measures have been implemented.

Turkey is also in the process of building a modular concrete wall at the Iranian border. The government says a 64-kilometer section will be completed by the end of the year.

For the Afghans who attempt the crossing it means first of all dealing with migrant smugglers. They reportedly pay between $600-4000 to smugglers depending on the type of transportation they are promised as they embark on a dangerous journey.

Many are not able to afford a car ride – which means walking for days if not weeks, mostly with limited food and water.

Afghans who have manage to cross into Turkey sadly recall this perilous journey they go through in order to seek refuge.

Shadman Muhammad is an Afghan national who now lives in the city of Van. He is one of the lucky ones to have migrated to Turkey two years ago.

Shadman used to be a musician in Afghanistan's Takhar province, and now he runs a small grocery story named "Afghan Brother" in the city center. He says his father and brothers were part of the local police force and were threatened by the Taliban daily.

He says he felt forced to flee "because we were on the side of the government – life became unbearable. My parents and brothers are still there, I was only able to save my wife and three children."

Now he is worried sick for his family left behind. He says he hasn't heard from his parents in 5 days and is worried for their safety now that the Taliban has taken over.

Fleeing the Taliban, in his view, is not a choice – "If there wasn't a war, we would have never migrated to Turkey. We didn't come here for pleasure. No one would simply embark on this perilous road with their kids."

Rise of anti-migrant sentiment in Turkey

Meanwhile many Turks have been expressing concern over the rise in illegal crossings at the Iranian border.

Experts such as the rector of the Van Yuzunci Yil University and director of Population and Migration Studies Center Prof. Dr. Orhan Deniz have warned that the irregular migration Turkey has been facing over the past few years will have long term social, economic and demographic consequences.

"There is unemployment in Turkey. If the Afghans keep coming, our youth will be jobless," said Selim Buru, a restaurant owner in the city of Van.

The rising anti-migrant sentiment is tangible in this city, which borders Iran. Many Afghans fleeing the Taliban have recently been attempting to enter Turkey through the border of this city. Hundreds were reportedly able to make the illegal crossing each day, though many more have tried but failed.

Turkey is currently hosting over 4 million refugees, approximately 3.7 million of them are Syrian, but Afghans are the second-largest group.

When the Syrian refugee crisis began, Turkey had an open-door policy and welcomed Syrians as they fled the war. However, with it appearing that many intend to stay, the sentiment in Turkey has started to shift.

One main factor is that the Turkish economy has been suffering over the past few years.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had an impact, but so have political crises with the U.S. and EU, as well as controversial monetary policies. The Turkish lira has lost half of its value since 2018, and Turkey's annual inflation rate reached 18.95 percent in July.

Turks are feeling the pain. 

"Our own people are unable to find work. Our government is forced to feed these people, to provide them with jobs. It's problematic in every sense," Turkish citizen Halil Yildiz.

The resentment against refugees recently turned violent after an 18-year old Turkish youth, Emirhan Yalcin, was fatally stabbed during a street fight between Syrian refugees and locals in Ankara on August 10.

For two days, locals attacked the shops and homes of Syrians in the Altindag neighborhood where the incident took place.

The Platform for Solidarity with Syrian Refugees criticized the vandalism by locals and said, "No group, not just asylum seekers, should be subjected to collective blame for an individual crime."

The Turkish government has said it cannot take the burden of another wave of immigration. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan also said Turkey cannot be a "stop-over inn" for migrants.

Turkey's main opposition has criticized the government for its refugee policy and has vowed to "solve the refugee problem with common sense" when they come to power, saying they would "bid farewell to our guests with drums."

Meanwhile, many Turks have been quick to blame refugees for crimes such as burglaries. Racism toward and the stereotyping of refugees on social media have also been on the rise. Many in Turkey have questioned why the groups of Afghans arriving are only made up of young men.

A variety of conspiracies have become hot topics on social media. Even the main opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu has suggested that the arrival of so many young men with no women and children is suspicious and that the government is turning a blind eye to the crossings.

However, Afghans who enter Turkey illegally have argued that the journey across Iran's border into Turkey is a perilous one and not suitable for women and children.

(Cover: Turkish security forces take care of a child after irregular migrants were caught at the border with Iran in Van, Turkey, August 6, 2021. /Getty)