In the last two decades, the relationship and approach of the officials of the Islamic Republic of Iran with the Taliban terror group have had many ups and downs; From the period when the killing of Iranian consulate staff in Mazar-e-Sharif by the Taliban pushed things to the brink of military conflict, to recent months and years, when Taliban leaders travel to Iran secretly and sometimes even openly.
With Taliban forces defeating the government in Afghanistan, the role of Iran, which has had a troubled past with the group, has become increasingly important.
Three days before the Taliban took over Afghanistan’s capital Kabul, Iran was the first country to legitimize the terror group by referring to them as the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.
Iran now claims to be the defender of the Shiite minority in Afghanistan, but uses the millions of Afghan refugees in Iran as pawns in its proxy wars by sending the Hazara Shiites to Iraq and Syria, under the banner of Liwa Fatemiyoun and has reportedly returned thousands of Afghan refugees at borders to be slaughtered by Taliban.
Twenty-two years ago, Taliban forces captured the city of Mazar-e-Sharif for the second time. Following the fall of the city of Mazar-e-Sharif by the Taliban, the headquarters of the Iranian consulate in the city was attacked and eight of the country’s diplomats disappeared. It was later reported that the Iranian diplomats and journalists had been killed.
Following the assassination of Iranian diplomats, Iran who seemed determined to go to war, stationed a force of 70,000 troops at the border. The Taliban continued to close the Helmand River dam and drastically reduced the amount of water entering Iran during the drought.
Drought and water cut by the Taliban severely damaged the habitat of Lake Hamoon.
Iran’s pervasive border with Afghanistan has somehow defined the country’s relations with the Taliban. The pores of this border are a place for migrants, drugs, armed groups, and water to cross.
Source: Radio Liberty
Also read: Iran embraces Taliban by calling terror group the Islamic Emirate
