In May 2018, the United States withdrew from an agreement known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which was signed between the Group of Five plus One and Iran in July 2015.
The President of the United States, Donald Trump, severely criticized the agreement and questioned the Obama administration. As soon as he was installed in the White House, he implemented his election promise to withdraw from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action agreement.
The maximum economic pressure caused by the unprecedented sanctions on the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran casts a shadow on the livelihood and daily life of the Iranian people. Also, the lack of vision and a bright future caused an increase in the migration of Iranians, who mainly made up the middle class of society. People who left their motherland with all their ability and expertise, social position, and family relationship with the hope of a better tomorrow for themselves and their families and set foot on the path of emigration.
The first, easiest, and closest immigration destination for Iranians is Turkey. From a long time ago, Iranians have been and still are very interested in this land in terms of historical, cultural, and religious background. No need to obtain a visa and the ease of coming and going to Iran made a large number of Turkish immigrants to be Iranians. Most of these Iranian immigrants are interested in living in Istanbul.
According to the report of “Iran Migration Observatory”, in 2020, the population of Iranian immigrants has quadrupled compared to 1990, and the amount of Iranian immigration has grown threefold in the last four years.
This report adds that the number of immigrants with Iranian citizenship in Turkey based on the year of residence in 2019 has doubled compared to 2018 and has grown twice in 2018 compared to 2017.
According to this report, in 2019, about 42 thousand immigrants with Iranian citizenship entered Turkey. In 2016, this number was around 15,500 people.
However, many Iranians do not consider Turkey as the final goal of immigration and choose it only as the first step to leave Iran. According to the report, in 2018, more than 18 thousand Iranians left Turkey for other destinations. According to the report of this non-governmental organization, the largest number of Iranians seeking asylum are in Turkey, Germany, Great Britain, Iraq, and Australia.
The photo collection of migration to Istanbul is the life story of 30 Iranians living in the city of Istanbul, which took place in the summer of 2022. I asked people to choose the place of photography by themselves from their home, workplace, or hangout such as a cafe, bar, or sports club, in the whole place where they belong mentally or physically.
