Abandoned Infants

Each day, two infants are abandoned on the streets of Mashhad, the capital of Khorasan Razavi Province because their parents cannot afford to take care of them, and “nearly 50-60 babies are handed over to welfare centers every month,” said Ziba Mojarrab, head of the provincial Abandoned Children’s Office at the State Welfare Organization (SWO). “Last month, 42 babies were admitted to the Ali Asghar (AS) Nursery of Mashhad,” salamatnews.com quoted her as saying. According to the latest figures, at present 1.2 million people are living in the city’s informal settlements under unfavorable socioeconomic conditions. Also, many illegal immigrants (mostly Afghans) are living in Mashhad which is the second most populous city in Iran.