Iranians Keep Arriving at Kapikoy Border Checkpoint

BTA correspondent Ayshe Sali, Kaloyan Kirilov

Kapikoy border checkpoint, Van Province, Turkiye, March 3, 2026 (BTA Photo/Ayshe Sali)

Kapikoy, Turkiye,

03.03.2026 18:07

(BTA)

Iranians continued to arrive in Turkiye through the Kapikoy border checkpoint in Van Province on Tuesday. The crossing, about 100 km from the city of Van, has become a focal point since air strikes between Iran, Israel and the United States began.

Kapikoy, a border crossing between Turkiye and Iran about 100 kilometers from the Turkish city of Van, is one of the places where the impact of the Iran-Israel-U.S. exchange of airstrikes is visible in everyday life.

Since Feb. 28, journalists, photographers, taxi drivers and minibus operators have been watching the arrivals gates, waiting for people coming from Iran. Turkish authorities have yet to release official figures, but in informal conversations border guards said 1,200 people arrived between Feb. 27 and March 1, 2026. On Monday, March 2, the number rose to 2,000 after day-trip crossings were suspended. Such crossings are short visits with no overnight stay and a maximum duration of one day in the destination country.

Around midday, a steady stream of people carrying suitcases began emerging on the Turkiye side. Most were young people and students. Others made sure to bring what mattered to them, including an elderly man who had wrapped a stringed instrument in a black plastic bag. Women also stood out, many with headscarves draped over their shoulders or carried in their hands. After leaving Iran, the scarves were no longer covering their hair, as they are required to do at home.

Most avoided journalists and cameras, but those willing to say where they were from and why spoke good Turkish or English. Tehran and Tabriz were mentioned most often, and the most common reason was a desire to be somewhere safer. Questions about Iran’s political situation and their longer-term plans were the ones they most often declined to answer.

Drivers soon followed with transport offers. A taxi to Van and the city’s airport cost TRY 5,000 (about EUR 100), while a minibus cost TRY 350 (about EUR 7), making the cheaper option the clear favorite. Military and gendarmerie patrols lined the road from the border to the provincial capital. Two checkpoints were also set up, requiring everyone to disembark with their luggage for inspection.

Against this backdrop, a smaller number of people were also trying to return to Iran. On Tuesday, they included a group of workers who had lost contact with relatives. Others traveling to Tehran said they felt it was time to go back and show unity.

No humanitarian agencies, volunteers or support institutions were present at Kapikoy to assist arrivals from Iran, and their onward plans beyond Van were unclear.

/КТ/