Iran, Taliban Exchange Heavy Fire Amid Border Water Dispute

Reuters: At Least Three Killed in Clash on Iran-Afghan Border 

DUBAI (Reuters) - Two Iranian border guards and one Taliban fighter were killed after shooting broke out near a border post between Iran and Afghanistan, a Taliban spokesman and Iran's state media said on Saturday.

It was not immediately clear what had provoked the incident, in which several people were also injured, but it came amid tensions between the two countries over water rights. 

Iran has accused Afghanistan's Taliban rulers of violating a 1973 treaty by restricting the flow of water from the Helmand river to Iran's parched eastern regions, an accusation denied by the Taliban. 

"Today, in Nimroz province, Iranian border forces fired toward Afghanistan, which was met with a counter-reaction," spokesman for the Taliban-run interior ministry, Abdul Nafi Takor, said in a statement. 

"The situation is under control now. The Islamic Emirate does not want to fight with its neighbours," the spokesman said, without identifying the victims.  

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Iran, Taliban Exchange Heavy Fire Amid Border Water Dispute  

Iran exchanges heavy gunfire with Taliban on Afghan border, escalating tensions over water rights -- AP  

Iranian Border Guards Killed in Taliban Clash Amid Water Dispute -- Bloomberg 

Iranian and Taliban forces engage in shootout on border over water dispute -- Times of Israel  

Taliban clash with Iranian forces – reports -- RT  

At least three killed in shooting at Iran-Afghan border -- Al Jazeera

Iran And Taliban Forces Clash In Border Area

Al-Monitor: Iranian forces, Taliban clash over Afghan 'border misunderstanding' 

Iranian media denied reports that several Iranian border checkpoints fell to the Taliban on Wednesday. 

Clashes between Iranian forces and Afghanistan’s Taliban fighters have ended, Iranian state news outlets reported on Wednesday, blaming a “border misunderstanding” for the incident. 

"The clashes ended and Iran is discussing the dispute over the border with the Taliban," Reuters quoted the semi-official Tasnim news agency as saying. 

The Iranian news outlet also denied reports that the Taliban fighters had captured an Iranian border camp near Afghanistan’s Nimroz province.  

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Iran And Taliban Forces Clash In Border Area  

Taliban, Iran Say Misunderstanding Sparked Brief Border Clashes -- VOA  

Clashes over Iran-Afghanistan's 'border misunderstanding' ended -- Reuters  

Iran and Taliban forces clash in border area -- Al Jazeera  

Taliban clash with Iranian troops in 'misunderstanding' at border -- The National  

Iranian border guards, Taliban engage in fierce fighting -- Middle East Monitor  

Fierce Taliban vs. Iran Clashes Break Out On Afghan Border -- Zero Hedge

Aid Agencies Say Up To 5,000 People Are Fleeing Into Iran From Afghanistan Every Day

 

Reuters: Aid group says 4000-5000 Afghans crossing into Iran daily 

KABUL (Reuters) - As many as 4,000-5,000 Afghans have been crossing into Iran daily since the Taliban seized Kabul in August and hundreds of thousands more are expected to arrive in the coming winter, the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) said on Wednesday. 

The aid group said as many as 300,000 Afghans have crossed the border since the Taliban victory and it called for more international support for Iran, which is grappling with a deep economic crisis of its own. 

"Iran cannot be expected to host so many Afghans with so little support from the international community," NRC Secretary General Jan Egeland said in a statement. 

"There must be an immediate scale up of aid both inside Afghanistan and in neighbouring countries like Iran, before the deadly winter cold."  

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WNU Editor: Iran was adamant that the US leave Afghanistan. Now that the US is gone, Iran is demanding billions in aid to stem this massive migration out of Afghanistan. 

This reminds me of the old saying. "Be careful on what you wish for". 

In the case of Iran. They are now living it. 

More News On The Tens Of Thousands Of Afghans Fleeing Into Iran  

Aid group says 4,000-5,000 Afghans crossing into Iran daily -- Al Jazeera  

Humanitarian needs in Iran rise as 300,000 Afghans arrive since Taliban takeover -- Norwegian Refugee Council  

Humanitarian needs in Iran rise as 300,000 Afghans arrive since Taliban takeover -- Reliefweb  

Iran left on its own with millions of Afghan refugees: Minister -- Press TV 

Iran Calls on Intl Community to Prevent Afghan Migrants -- TOLO News

U.S. Military Equipment Spotted In Iran

The Telegram channel speculates that Iran either bought the vehicles from the Taliban or just took them from Afghan soldiers that drove across the border last month in an attempt to flee the Taliban.https://t.co/06Lq8unB6o

— Kian Sharifi (@KianSharifi) September 1, 2021

Middle East Eye: US military equipment left behind in Afghanistan spotted in Iran: Report  

Pentagon says the military equipment left in Afghanistan was not a 'great strategic use to any force' and not a significant threat to US 

US military equipment, including armoured vehicles worth hundreds of thousands of dollars each, have reportedly been spotted in Iran following the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, several social media accounts have reported. 

Kian Sharifi, a BBC journalist focused on Iranian politics and social media, tweeted on Wednesday several photographs of Humvees and other military vehicles on a highway connecting the central city of Semnan to the city of Garmsar, southeast of the capital Tehran. 

Sharifi said the photos came from an Iranian Telegram channel, which speculated the vehicles were either sold by the Taliban to Iran, or were taken from Afghan soldiers fleeing the country after the group took over most of the country, including the capital, Kabul, last month.  

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Update #1: Taliban delivers US military vehicles to Iran (Arab News)  

Update #2: Report: U.S.-Funded Afghan Military Equipment Spotted in Iran (Breitbart)  

WNU Editor: Another PR coup for Iran.

Iran Mocks President Biden On The U.S. Withdrawal From Afghanistan

TEHRAN — After 20 years U.S. troops are leaving Afghanistan without even achieving any success. This marks a historic defeat for the U.S. and its coalition.  

Tehran Times: Afghanistan is burning while Biden thinks of Fourth of July 

Americans entered Afghanistan to implement a three-stage plan. To overthrow the Taliban, rebuild the central institutions, shift to the classical doctrine of counterinsurgency. After two decades none of the goals were realized. 

Obama decided in 2009 to temporarily increase the U.S. military presence in Afghanistan. More forces were deployed to implement a strategy to protect the population from attacks by the Taliban and to support insurgents' efforts to reintegrate into Afghan society. The strategy was also accompanied by a timetable for the withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan. Starting in 2011, security responsibilities were to be gradually transferred to the Afghan army and police. The new method largely failed to achieve its goals. Insurgent attacks and civilian casualties remained high, and Afghan military and police forces that performed security functions seem to be unprepared to contain the Taliban. By the time the U.S.-NATO combat mission officially ended in December 2014, 13 years had passed since the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan.

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WNU Editor: If Afghanistan disintegrates into chaos and civil war, it is going to be more than just a "degree of humiliation" for the U.S. .... US withdrawal from strategic Afghan base involves ‘degree of humiliation’ (France 24). It will be seen as a massive strategic defeat for the U.S. and its allies with deep geopolitical implications. And there is a precedent for it. 

The fall of South Vietnam in 1975 was seen by many as a massive defeat for the U.S., a defeat that embolden America's enemies that brought years of international instability, conflict, and a costly arms race.

I can see the same happening if Afghanistan falls to the Taliban. 

Americas enemies are going to be embolden, and they will move to take advantage of what they will see is a vacuum created by the White House. 

China is my primarily worry. and they are already making big plans .... China Has a BIG Plan for Post-U.S. Afghanistan—and It's Worth Billions (Daily Beast).

Massive Fire Engulfs Fuel Trucks On Iran-Afghanistan Border. Explosion Seen From Space

The two powerful explosions were caught by Nasa satellites. Photograph: Obtained By Reuters

The Guardian: Huge blasts on Afghanistan-Iran border spotted from space 

At least 60 injured in explosions at Islam Qala crossing that consumed 500 natural gas and fuel trucks 

A fuel tanker exploded on Saturday at the Islam Qala crossing in Afghanistan’s western Herat province on the Iranian border, injuring at least 60 people and causing a massive fire that consumed more than 500 trucks carrying natural gas and fuel, according to Afghan officials and Iranian state media. 

Two explosions at the border crossing were powerful enough to be spotted from space by Nasa satellites. One blast erupted around 1.10pm Afghan time (8.40am GMT), the next around a half hour later at 1.42pm local (9.12am GMT). 

It was not immediately clear what caused the blasts. 

Read more .... 

 More News On A Massive Fire Engulfing Fuel Trucks On The Iran-Afghanistan Border 

Fuel tanker blast at Afghan-Iran border causes massive fire -- AP 

Dozens hurt by huge blaze close to Iran-Afghanistan border -- Reuters 

Massive fire engulfs fuel trucks on Iran-Afghanistan border -- Middle East Eye 

Dozens hurt as massive blaze erupts on Afghanistan-Iran border -- Al Jazeera 

"Powerful Enough To Be Spotted From Space": Fuel Tanker Convoy Explodes At Afghan-Iran Border -- Zero Hedge 

Explosion hits Iran-Afghanistan border (Videos) -- MEHR News Agency