Several similar incidents have occurred since the Taliban armed takeover of Afghanistan in August 2021.
Tehran, Iran – According to a local Afghan official, a border clash between Iranian forces and the Afghan Taliban has left one dead.
Mawlawi Mohammad Ebrahim Hewad, the Islamic Emirate’s border commander in Nimroz province, was quoted by the Afghan newspaper TOLOnews as saying that a Taliban soldier died and another was injured on Sunday.
He claimed Iranian forces started the fighting, which he said was taking place in Kong district of Nimroz.
Portal also quoted a police officer in Nimroz as saying a member of the Taliban force had died.
The state-run Iranian IRNA did not comment on the reported casualty but said the fight was started by Taliban forces.
According to IRNA and the semi-official Tasnim news agency, the fighting began when Taliban forces entered Iranian soil in Hirmand, in Sistan and Balochistan province, and attempted to hoist their own flag.
They said Taliban forces had once again misunderstood a wall built to contain smugglers that doesn’t really mark the border between the two countries.
“Because of a misunderstanding of the border line, Taliban forces imagine the wall is the border between Iran and Afghanistan when it is not,” Tasnim said. “The Iranian border officials have been trying to make them understand that for the past few months.”
A short video circulating on Iranian social media on Sunday allegedly showed Iranian forces firing grenades from the back of a truck in the border area.
Several similar incidents have occurred since the Taliban armed takeover of Afghanistan in August 2021.
The first publicized incident of this type, which did not result in any casualties, occurred in December and was described as a “misunderstanding” by authorities in both countries.
Iran has yet to officially recognize the Taliban as the government of Afghanistan, claiming that its recognition would be conditional on the formation of an “inclusive” administration.
The two have also clashed over Iran’s water rights on the Helmand River, which the Taliban have yet to grant, although they recognize the right.