An Afghan diplomat in Iran said that the former leadership of the embassy locked the diplomatic office and handed its key to Iran’s foreign ministry which in turn handed it over to the Taliban.
The Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs meanwhile said in a statement on Monday the handover of Afghanistan’s embassy in Tehran to the Taliban was an internal matter for Afghans and that Iran had not interfered in the matter.
The ministry said it has not received any documents or equipment belonging to the embassy.
But on Sunday, an Afghan diplomat in Iran said that the former leadership of the embassy locked the diplomatic office and handed its key to Iran’s foreign ministry which in turn handed it over to the Taliban.
The embassy had 15 diplomats, all appointed by the previous government in Afghanistan.
The handover of the embassy to the Taliban sparked widespread reactions, with one anti-Taliban movement, the resistance front, claiming in a statement the move will create further concerns for Afghan refugees in Iran.
“The handover of Afghanistan’s diplomatic office to a group which is the killer of the people of Afghanistan sends an unpleasant message to the people and a number of other countries,” said the statement.
Taliban’s charge d’affaires
Mohammad Afzal Haqqani was appointed as the deputy secretary of Afghanistan’s embassy in Tehran eight months ago.
A diplomat from Afghanistan’s embassy in Tehran said last week the former embassy staff did not want Haqqani to work there.
He said there was a “compromise” between Iran and Taliban about the new leadership of the embassy.
This comes as no country has officially recognized the Taliban administration – 18 months after their takeover.
