KABUL, Afghanistan — For the tens of thousands of Afghan migrants fleeing to Europe, the hardest part of the journey may not be the perilous trip across the Mediterranean Sea. Before they navigate that risk, many have to get through Iran. That step on the Afghans' westward journey is being met by an abusive crackdown from Iranian security officials, according to Afghans who say they have faced arrest, beatings, torture and gunfire from Iranian guards blocking access to Turkey. The stories of abuse are surprising mostly because Iran has a history of some hospitality for Afghans, accepting more than 2 millon refugees during the 1980s and 1990s as Afghans fled the Soviet occupation and...
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