Iran today summoned the Afghan envoy to protest the violence at its consulate in Herat yesterday and announced the closure of its diplomatic missions in Afghanistan until further notice.
Dozens of Afghans shouted “Death to Iran” in front of the Iranian consulate in Herat, western Afghanistan, on Monday, according to a AFP reporter. They also burned an Iranian flag, smashed video surveillance cameras on the building and threw stones.
Protesters protested the video content on social media that was broadcast last weekend, showing men posing as Iranian border guards and crowds of Iranians beating Afghan refugees.
The Iranian embassy in Kabul was also targeted by protesters, according to a statement posted on the Iranian Foreign Ministry’s website today.
The Foreign Ministry “today summoned the plenipotentiary of the Afghan embassy in Tehran to protest strongly against the attacks on the Iranian embassy in Kabul and the consulate general in Herat,” according to the statement.
The embassy and consulates in Afghanistan “have suspended their activities until further notice in order to ensure their security,” the ministry said in a statement.
The authenticity of the videos showing what appears to be violence against Afghan refugees in Iran cannot be confirmed by an independent source. It is also not possible to know when they were shot.
In a statement issued Sunday, the Iranian embassy in Kabul described them as “unfounded”.
The Taliban seized power in Afghanistan last August, and Iran, which shares a 900km border with Afghanistan, has not recognized their government.
Thousands of Afghans are trying to enter Iran every day in search of work, or in an attempt to reach Europe in the hope of obtaining asylum there.
More than five million Afghans, with or without papers, live in Iran, Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency reported last week, citing Iranian Foreign Minister Amirabdollahian.
SOURCE: AMPE
Source: Capital
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