TEHRAN, IRAN — Iran on Tuesday summoned Afghanistan’s envoy in Tehran over attacks the previous day on Iranian diplomatic missions in the neighbouring country, state media in Iran reported.
According to the reports, Iran’s foreign ministry summoned the Afghan charge d’affaires in protest over Monday’s attacks on the Iranian Embassy in Kabul and the Iranian Consulate in Herat, where protests had turned aggressive. In Herat, angry Afghan protesters pelted the consulate with rocks.
The ministry demanded that Afghanistan’s new Taliban rulers provide the missions with full security and said they stopped working until further notice. On Monday, ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said more needed to bexjmtzyw done by the Taliban to ensure security to Iranian missions.
Later on Tuesday, Iran said the missions had reopened.
An Associated Press video showed the protesters setting the consulate’s gates on fire and chanting “Death to Iran!” as police were trying to disperse them by shooting into air. The video also showed protesters gathering at the Iranian Embassy in Kabul.
In recent weeks, unverified videos purporting to show Afghan refugees being tortured in Iran have been published on social media, angering many Afghans. Iran has denied the accusations.
Iran hosts millions of Afghan refugees. Last week, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said the number of Afghans in Iran has jumped to 5 million, from nearly 4 million before the Taliban took power last August.
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Afghans chant slogans against Iran during a demonstration in Massoud Square, Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, April 12, 2022. (AP Photo/Mohammed Shoaib Amin)
