Iran Warns Taliban of ‘Strategic Loss’ over Border Dispute

Iranian military and police officials hold a joint meeting. (Tasnim)
Iranian military and police officials hold a joint meeting. (Tasnim)
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Iran Warns Taliban of ‘Strategic Loss’ over Border Dispute

Iranian military and police officials hold a joint meeting. (Tasnim)
Iranian military and police officials hold a joint meeting. (Tasnim)

Two Iranian military commanders visited a border area with Afghanistan following the heavy exchange of cross-border gunfire between Taliban and Iranian border guards, which killed and injured several.  

Taliban spokesman and Iranian state media said two Iranian border guards and a Taliban fighter were killed during the skirmish over water rights. 

The clashes occurred Saturday morning at the Sassuli border point in the Iranian province of Zabul.  

The Iranian border guards said in a statement that its forces used their intense fire to inflict heavy casualties and severe damage without giving further details.  

Taliban defense ministry spokesman Enayatullah Khowarazmi said: "Unfortunately, once again, in the border areas of Kong district of Nimroz province, there was a shooting by Iranian soldiers, (and) a conflict ... broke out."  

"The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan considers dialogue and negotiation reasonable for any problem. Making excuses for war and negative actions is not in the interest of any of the parties," Khowarazmi said.  

Commander of the ground forces in the Iranian army Kioumars Heydari and deputy commander of Iran's Law Enforcement Forces Qasem Rezaei visited the border to monitor the situation. 

Heydari said: "The common borders with Afghanistan are fully under the control of the army's ground forces... and security is fully established." 

Iranian media confirmed the reopening of the Silk Road border bridge between Iran and Afghanistan, which was closed due to the clashes.  

Rezaei asserted that Tehran would not allow any unfortunate incident on the border with Afghanistan, adding that stability has been restored.  

He accused the Taliban of using all forms of weapons without observing international laws and the principle of good neighborliness.  

Meanwhile, Assistant of Foreign Minister Rasool Mousavi said Iran must remain vigilant, warning any conflict will be a "strategic loss" for both parties. 

Iranian media reported that officials from Iran and Afghanistan had agreed to a ceasefire and the formation of a fact-finding committee. 

The Iranian parliament held an emergency meeting to discuss the tensions with the Taliban. Iran's special envoy to Afghanistan, Hasan Kazemi Qomi, attended the meeting. 

Qomi had held talks with Taliban's Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi in Kabul Saturday.  

Lawmaker and National Security and Foreign Policy Committee member Ismail Kothari said the dispute will be resolved through dialogue, not force. He clarified that Iran does not recognize the Taliban despite meeting with its members. 

Meanwhile, the Taliban claimed to have destroyed 18 Iranian border installations, reported Russia Today. 

It quoted a statement by the Taliban's Communications Department accusing the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) of carrying out the attacks.  

The clashes reflect the sharply escalating rising tensions between the two countries amid a dispute over water rights over a dam on the Helmand River. 

Last week, Iran warned that it reserves the right to take the necessary measures to protect its shares of the water. 

It accused the Taliban of violating a 1973 agreement by reducing the water flow from the river to the dry eastern regions of Iran. The Taliban denied the accusation. 

The Helmand River originates from central Afghanistan and flows over 1,000 km until it reaches Lake Hamun at the border.  

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid had previously said Kabul was holding on to fulfilling its obligations but indicated that the water level had declined because of a severe drought.  



Azerbaijan Observes Day of Mourning for Air Crash Victims as Speculation Mount about Its Cause

People lay flowers to commemorate victims of an Azerbaijan Airlines' Embraer passenger plane crash near the Kazakh city of Aktau, at a memorial installed outside an airport in Baku, Azerbaijan, December 26, 2024. (Reuters)
People lay flowers to commemorate victims of an Azerbaijan Airlines' Embraer passenger plane crash near the Kazakh city of Aktau, at a memorial installed outside an airport in Baku, Azerbaijan, December 26, 2024. (Reuters)
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Azerbaijan Observes Day of Mourning for Air Crash Victims as Speculation Mount about Its Cause

People lay flowers to commemorate victims of an Azerbaijan Airlines' Embraer passenger plane crash near the Kazakh city of Aktau, at a memorial installed outside an airport in Baku, Azerbaijan, December 26, 2024. (Reuters)
People lay flowers to commemorate victims of an Azerbaijan Airlines' Embraer passenger plane crash near the Kazakh city of Aktau, at a memorial installed outside an airport in Baku, Azerbaijan, December 26, 2024. (Reuters)

Azerbaijan on Thursday observed a nationwide day of mourning for the victims of the air crash that killed 38 people and left all 29 survivors injured as speculation mounted about a possible cause of the crash that remained unknown.

Azerbaijan Airlines' Embraer 190 was en route from Azerbaijan's capital of Baku to the Russian city of Grozny in the North Caucasus on Wednesday when it was diverted for reasons yet unclear and crashed while making an attempt to land in Aktau in Kazakhstan after flying east across the Caspian Sea.

The plane went down about 3 kilometers (around 2 miles) from Aktau. Cellphone footage circulating online appeared to show the aircraft making a steep descent before smashing into the ground in a fireball. Other footage showed part of its fuselage ripped away from the wings and the rest of the aircraft lying upside in the grass.

On Thursday, national flags were lowered across Azerbaijan, traffic across the country stopped at noon, and signals were sounded from ships and trains as the country observed a nationwide moment of silence.

Speaking at a news conference Wednesday, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said that it was too soon to speculate on the reasons behind the crash, but said that the weather had forced the plane to change from its planned course.

“The information provided to me is that the plane changed its course between Baku and Grozny due to worsening weather conditions and headed to Aktau airport, where it crashed upon landing,” he said.

Russia’s civil aviation authority, Rosaviatsia, said that preliminary information indicated that the pilots diverted to Aktau after a bird strike led to an emergency on board.

According to Kazakh officials, those aboard the plane included 42 Azerbaijani citizens, 16 Russian nationals, six Kazakhs and three Kyrgyzstan nationals.

As the official crash investigation started, theories abounded about a possible cause, with some commentators alleging that holes seen in the plane's tail section possibly indicate that it could have come under fire from Russian air defense systems fending off a Ukrainian drone attack.

Ukrainian drones had previously attacked Grozny, the provincial capital of the Russian republic of Chechnya, and other regions in the country's North Caucasus. Some Russian media claimed that another drone attack on Chechnya happened on Wednesday, although it wasn't officially confirmed.

Osprey Flight Solutions, an aviation security firm based in the United Kingdom, warned its clients that the “Azerbaijan Airlines flight was likely shot down by a Russian military air-defense system.” Osprey provides analysis for carriers still flying into Russia after Western airlines halted their flights during the war.

Osprey CEO Andrew Nicholson said that the company had issued more than 200 alerts regarding drone attacks and air defense systems in Russia during the war.

“This incident is a stark reminder of why we do what we do,” Nicholson wrote online. “It is painful to know that despite our efforts, lives were lost in a way that could have been avoided.”

Asked about the claims that the plane had been fired upon by air defense assets, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that “it would be wrong to make hypotheses before investigators make their verdict.”

Officials in Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan have similarly avoided comment on a possible cause of the crash, saying it will be up to investigators to determine it.