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Iran
One Million Afghans Deported
According to the United Nations’ Refugee agency, more than 1.4 million Afghans have fled or been deported from Iran since January. Iran hosts the world’s largest refugee population, of which an estimated 95%, or 4 million people, are Afghans. In March, the Iranian government announced that undocumented Afghan refugees would be deported and gave July 6th as the deadline for voluntary departures. Government officials and state media claim that Afghans were recruited by Israel and the United States to take actions against the Iranian state. Security forces have raided workplaces and neighborhoods, stopped cars at checkpoints, and detained Afghans before sending them to detention centers. Nearly 20,000 Afghans are crossing the border from Iran to Afghanistan every day, primarily through the Islam Qala crossing, returning to a country facing simultaneous unemployment, housing, healthcare, and humanitarian crises.
This map depicts the Islam Qala border crossing from Iran into northwestern Afghanistan, near Herat, where thousands of Afghan refugees are being forced back into Afghanistan. Click on the map to learn more.
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Graphic Source: New York Times
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Israel-Palestine
“Humanitarian City” Plan in Gaza
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other government officials have advanced plans to compel the entire population of Gaza into a “humanitarian city” built on the ruins of Rafah in southern Gaza on the border with Egypt. Defense officials said the zone would initially house 600,000 Palestinians who are currently displaced along the southern coastline. Eventually, the entire population of Gaza – around 2.1 million people – would be held in the area. 83% of Gaza is already under forced displacement orders by the Israeli Defense Forces, with a high proportion also under Israeli military control. The plan includes an eventual opportunity for Palestinians to emigrate from Gaza, although no country has yet said they will support this. This plan has drawn internal criticism from within Israel’s security establishment and widespread denouncement from human rights groups.
This map depicts the construction of the Morag corridor and the proposed “humanitarian city” where Israel may compel the population of Gaza to live under a plan advanced by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Click on the map to learn more.
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Iceland
New Eruption Opens Fissure
A new eruption this morning on Iceland’s Reykjanes Peninsula is the twelfth since 2021 from the increasingly active Svartsengi volcanic system. The Sundhnukur volcano emitted lava from a fissure approximately 2,296 to 3,280 feet (700 to 1,000 meters) long, with the flow moving southeast and posing no immediate threat to infrastructure. As a precaution, authorities evacuated the Blue Lagoon, a luxury geothermal spa, and the nearby fishing town of Grindavik. The town, once home to nearly 4,000 people, has remained largely deserted since a 2023 evacuation order due to ongoing seismic and volcanic threats. No damage or injuries were reported, though southeasterly winds could carry volcanic gas toward Iceland’s main international airport, which remains fully operational. These frequent eruptions stand in stark contrast to Iceland’s historical average of one eruption every three to four years.
This map depicts volcanic hazard zones near Reykjanes, with Zone A around Grindavík at the highest risk due to ongoing unrest. Click on the map to learn more.
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Q: What state is home to the largest publicly protected area in the contiguous United States?
A: New York
Created in eastern upstate New York in 1892 as one of the first Forever Wild Forest Preserves in the nation, the Adirondack Park is a unique wilderness area and National Historic Landmark. At 6 million acres (2.4 million ha), it is the largest publicly protected area in the contiguous United States. The state of New York owns approximately 2.6 million acres (1 million ha), while the remaining 3.4 million acres (1.4 million ha) are devoted to forestry, agriculture and open space recreation. The Adirondack Park is not a National Park – there’s no fee to enter and the park doesn’t close at night, nor is it a state park, a common misconception. The Adirondack Park boasts 3,000 lakes and ponds, 30,000 miles (48,280 km) of rivers, and more than 2,000 miles (3,219 km) of hiking trails.
Source
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Q: The Annamite Range runs parallel to what country’s coastline?
Stay tuned for the answer to today’s question in tomorrow’s DailyGeo.
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