Iran closes its consulates in Afghanistan amid unrest
The Iranian Foreign Ministry decided to close its consular offices in Afghanistan, according to Al-Monitor. The decision came after crowds of citizens in the Afghan city of Herat threw stones at the Iranian consulate.
The cause of the unrest was a video of Afghan refugees in Iran allegedly being mistreated. The incident caused great concern to the Taliban.
On April 12, the Iranian Foreign Ministry summoned the acting Taliban in Tehran and lodged an official protest. The lawyer learned that Iranian consulates in Afghanistan would remain closed until Tehran received assurances from the Taliban that Iranian missions were completely safe.
Iranian officials also demanded the prosecution of Afghan demonstrators involved in the attack on the diplomatic mission in Herat.
Earlier, the New York Times reported that about 500 Afghan soldiers, officials and civilians were missing or killed after the Taliban launched a campaign to find people who had previously cooperated with the government.
The publication drew attention to the fact that the Taliban promised amnesty to former civil servants and members of the National Security Forces. However, the New York Times writes, in a number of cases, these promises have been broken.
