An Afghan citizen lost her life due to the icy cold along the mountain road between Iran and Turkey, the Demiroren news agency (DHA) reported on Sunday.
The woman was found barefoot in the snow on Saturday, putting her socks on her two children to keep their feet warm. The children were found by villagers in an almost hypothermic state, but were rescued.
Initial reports of the incident quoted the family as being found on the Turkish side of the border, but later reports confirmed they were still in Iran, near the village of Belasur, opposite the Turkish province of Van.
The family was gripped by a snowstorm. Children aged 8 and 9 received severe frostbite.
In a statement posted on Twitter, the Van province government said initial reports were inconsistent and an investigation found the incident took place outside Turkey.
“This embarrassing incident did not take place within our country, but in a village called Belasur in the Islamic Republic of Iran near the border with Turkey, people were handed over to Iranian soldiers by villagers,” the administration said.
At least four people have lost their lives in the same part of the border in the past month, according to local media reports.
Thousands of Afghans began traveling to Turkey via Iran in July 2021, when the United States withdrew completely and the Islamist extremist group, the Taliban, increased its control over Afghanistan.
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