A European migration crisis caused by hostilities in Iran could erupt rapidly, International Organization for Migration (IOM) Director General Amy Pope predicted in Brussels.
“I mean, look at what happened in Ukraine, where we saw millions of people cross the border really within days,” she told dpa in an interview.
“When we’re in a conflict, when there are countries that are not that far from Europe, it’s incredibly important to stay abreast of the movements of people. It’s incredibly important to start thinking through contingency planning,” Pope said.
“What we’ve seen in Iran in the past when there have been attacks is they first leave the major cities, they go to family members,” she said.
The key issue was whether the conflict continued and expanded, affecting civilian infrastructure. “Those are some of the triggers that we expect will lead to more movements of people,” she said.
The IOM head called for plans to be drawn up. “The first planning, really, that needs to happen is how can we provide support to the neighbouring countries that might absorb migrants and refugees in the first instance,” she said.
Pope mentioned Turkey, Iran’s immediate neighbour to the west, in this regard.
German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said in a television interview on Wednesday that no additional refugee movements from Iran to Germany had been seen thus far.
And EU Migration Commissioner Magnus Brunner said on Monday that the European Commission was not observing any major movements along Iran’s borders.