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.  



S. Korean Prosecutors Say Yoon Authorized ‘Shooting’ during Martial Law Bid

A TV screen shows a file image of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, being broadcast at the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024. (AP)
A TV screen shows a file image of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, being broadcast at the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024. (AP)
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S. Korean Prosecutors Say Yoon Authorized ‘Shooting’ during Martial Law Bid

A TV screen shows a file image of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, being broadcast at the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024. (AP)
A TV screen shows a file image of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, being broadcast at the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024. (AP)

South Korea's suspended president Yoon Suk Yeol authorized the military to fire their weapons if needed to enter parliament during his failed bid to impose martial law, according to a prosecutors' report seen by AFP on Saturday.

The 10-page summary from former defense minister Kim Yong-hyun's prosecution indictment report, which was provided to the media, also says Yoon vowed on December 3 to declare martial law three times if necessary.

Yoon, who was stripped of his duties by the National Assembly this month, is under investigation for his short-lived attempt to scrap civilian rule, which plunged the country into political turmoil and led to his impeachment.

Yoon's lawyer Yoon Kab-keun dismissed the prosecutors' report, telling AFP it was "a one-sided account that neither corresponds to objective circumstances nor common sense".

As lawmakers rushed to parliament on December 3 to vote down Yoon's martial law declaration, heavily armed troops stormed the building, scaling fences, smashing windows and landing by helicopter.

According to the prosecution indictment report, Yoon told the chief of the capital defense command, Lee Jin-woo, that military forces could shoot if necessary to enter the National Assembly.

"Have you still not got in? What are you doing? Break down the door and drag them out, even if it means shooting," Yoon told Lee, according to the report.

Yoon also allegedly told the head of the Defense Counterintelligence Command, General Kwak Jong-keun, to "quickly get inside" the National Assembly since the quorum for the martial law declaration to be lifted had not been met.

"So quickly get inside the National Assembly and bring out the people inside the chamber, and break down the doors with an axe if necessary and drag everyone out," the report quotes Yoon as saying at the time.

After lawmakers rushed inside parliament and voted 190-0 to nullify Yoon's declaration in the early hours of December 4, the report says Yoon told Lee, "Even if it's lifted, I can declare martial law a second or third time, so just keep going."

The report also included screenshots of senior defense officials' messages from the day of the martial law declaration.

It said there was evidence that Yoon had been discussing declaring martial law with senior military officials as early as March.

The declaration followed a budget tussle between Yoon's party and the opposition.

Days later, Yoon said in a speech that he apologized for the "anxiety and inconvenience" and promised that there would not be a second declaration of martial law.

Ex-defense minister Kim was arrested this month over his role in the failed martial law bid.

Opposition Democratic Party lawmaker Kang Sun-woo said in a statement on Saturday that "the prosecution has laid bare the undeniable ugly truth about Yoon Suk Yeol, the treasonous ringleader", adding that he must be "arrested immediately".

South Korea's Constitutional Court held its first preliminary hearing on the validity of Yoon's impeachment on Friday, with the suspended president's legal team attending.

The court will also decide the fate of Yoon's replacement, Han Duck-soo, who was impeached Friday over his refusal to complete Yoon's impeachment process and bring him to justice.